Force Multipliers: High-Tech Eyes Extending Our Reach Beyond the Horizon.
The DataXplorer from Open Ocean Robotics is a solar-powered, autonomous uncrewed vehicle designed to provide continuous, 24/7 surveillance coverage in remote, all-weather marine environments. This zero-emission solution offers a highly cost-effective alternative to traditional patrols, with an estimated annual protection cost of less than $300 per square kilometer.
Gabon would be a great candidate for a DataXplorer. The angle that I would take if we were still leading the project is to have the DataXplorer support two separate regions, the opening of the Oguee River to the Atlantic, where patrols with traditional vessels are very dangerous due to rapids and riptides. Constant IUU fishing is happening there with illegal mesh-sized nets that have devastated th
- Galápagos spends more per km² than many larger MPAs, largely due to:
- The high biodiversity value and risk of IUU (illegal, unreported, unregulated) fishing
- Geographic challenges of patrolling over 130,000 km² with manned vessels
- MPAs using technology-assisted patrols (e.g., satellite, autonomous vessels like DataXplorer) achieve:
- Lower per-km² costs
- Greater sur