A KSB deployed off the coast of California

HyperKelp is collaborating with Northrop Grumman to monitor the profound effects of climate change through Project Glacier Watch, a campaign to deploy critical sensors in the Arctic using HyperKelp’s Kelp Smart Buoy (KSB) as a hosted payload platform.

SAN DIEGO (PRWEB) January 05, 2022

HyperKelp is collaborating with Northrop Grumman to monitor the profound effects of climate change through Project Glacier Watch, a campaign to deploy critical Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth (CTD) sensors in the Arctic using HyperKelp’s Kelp Smart Buoy (KSB) as a hosted payload platform. Project Glacier Watch is part of Northrop Grumman’s Tech For Conservation initiative.

As part of Project Glacier Watch, HyperKelp is working with Northrop Grumman to deploy a reusable CTD payload to measure ice melt effectively. By operating a CTD profiler from HyperKelp’s autonomous KSB systems, climate scientists can access continuous data to monitor the rates and effects of ice melt below the surface. The data provided by HyperKelp and Northrop Grumman will help scientists understand and mitigate the impact of climate change and sea-level rise. The companies aim to deploy these monitors in summer 2022.

“As glaciers melt in a warming climate, their meltwater runs off into the ocean. The long-term effects of this – like rising sea levels – are global and catastrophic,” said Costas Soler, Chief Technology Officer at HyperKelp. “In the short term, glacial meltwater impacts the local water chemistry by changing its conductivity and temperature.” To monitor these changes, scientists use a CTD profiler.

Currently, ice melt is measured remotely with satellite measurements. While satellite measurements are helpful to quantify the effects of a warming atmosphere on glaciers above sea level, it is not possible to measure the impact of warming oceans beneath the surface. Seawater masks the signals needed to take remote measurements and understand what is happening beneath the surface, so sensors must be deployed underwater.

“Every day we work to solve the world’s toughest challenges while taking action to protect and preserve our planet,” said Tony Long, Blue Labs manager, Northrop Grumman. “We look forward to working with HyperKelp on this project to help scientists understand and mitigate the impact of climate change and sea-level rise.”

The CTD profiling system being developed by Project Glacier Watch enables scientists to gather repeated measurements at key study sites for durations of up to six months. By using HyperKelp’s KSB to deploy the CTD payload, scientists will soon be able to access new types of climate data at will, from anywhere in the world.

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