The Falkor was a German fisheries ship built in 1981 and retrofitted in 2012. Capable of diving as deep as 4,500 meters, SuBastian features several high-definition video cameras and is designed to be modular, which lets operators customize the proprietary ROV for each mission. Schmidt scientists sail the world on a research vessel called the Falkor, equipped with a wealth of scientific gear, including echosounders, a blimp for aerial observations, and a remotely operated vehicle named SuBastian. 'That information is made publicly available so that ocean policy makers can better understand and create boundaries for protected areas and for regulations.' 'We're able to characterize or understand environments.' says Wiener. You can watch the interview in the video above.Ī diver at the Great Barrier Reef, off the shore of Queensland, Australia. That's where the Schmidt Ocean Institute comes in, a nonprofit using advanced technology to map the ocean floors. Key to the survival of the reef (and others like it) is data. That's possibly most evident at Australia's famed Great Barrier Reef.Ī study published in October found that about half the reef has died since the 1990s, largely because of record-breaking temperatures. For years, scientists have been telling us that climate change and our addiction to plastic are directly responsible for the decline in ocean health. June 8 is World Ocean Day, and it's not hyperbole that we're killing our planet's seas.

The future of our ocean