Buoy off the shore of La Jolla, California, uses a blinking light as a navigational signal to alert boats to the CalWave wave energy converter in the waters below (left). This is one type of anthropogenic light on the surface of the ocean. Another type of unnatural light is skyglow, as seen from a research boat in the photo on the right. The city lights of San Diego produce a light dome extending far into the atmosphere and over the water. (Photos by Alicia Amerson).
Similar to humans, animals rely on natural light patterns for foraging, migration, sleeping, socializing, reproduction behavior, and to support circadian rhythms. Anthropogenic, or man-made light, will be necessary for marine energy installations for navigational safety and maintenance. At this time, there are still a lot of unknowns about how anthropogenic light affects marine mammals, seabirds, fishes, plankton, and other marine wildlife species.
To help fill information gaps, Triton is researching the interactions of marine wildlife and anthropogenic light associated with marine energy devices. This information will be turned into industry recommendations on advanced lighting technology and best practices to proactively reduce light impact in the marine environment. Triton's project manager and marine biologist,Alicia Amerson, and principal investigator and marine scientist,Joe Haxel, are working with lighting scientists Morgan Pattison, Caroline Reilly, and Julia Larson atSolid State Lighting Services, Inc., to conduct this anthropogenic light investigation.Read more.
FIELD NOTES: TRITON IN LA JOLLA, CALIFORNIA
Lenaig Hemery is smiling big under her mask after a successful deployment of the Boxfish camera on a beautiful day in La Jolla, California. The light spot just beneath the surface in the background is the CalWave energy converter. (Photo by Cailene Gunn)
Changes in Habitat Field Trials
Lenaig Hemery and the Triton Field Trials (TFiT) changes in habitat team conducted tests at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) in La Jolla, California. The team deployed a Boxfish 360-degree underwater video camera around an anchor near CalWave Power Technologies xWave wave energy converter (WEC). Field tests assessed the utility of these cameras for monitoring artificial reef effects and other potential changes to habitats around marine energy devices and associated structures. These tests will inform a set of recommendations to decision makers in the marine energy industry on best practices for monitoring marine-energy related changes to underwater habitats.
During the field trial we experienced challenges with the underwater lights, we want to thank FoxFury Lighting Solutions for saving the day and providing a quick solution that would allow us to continue our research. We’d also like to thank Light and Motion and Greysam Industrial Services for helping us find a solution to the lighting challenge and equipping the team with new lights for future deployments.
The changes in habitat team preparing the Boxfish camera with lights for a sunset deployment. (Photo by Alicia Amerson)
Testing the Integral NoiseSpotter®
Garrett Staines also traveled SIO to support Integral Consulting in testing their NoiseSpotter® technology. Successful development, testing, and validation of NoiseSpotter® were facilitated with Triton support at PNNL's Marine and Coastal Research Laboratory from 2017-2019 (Chang et al., 2021). Integral's final demonstration characterized potential sound emissions from the CalWave operational xWave WEC as well as other sounds nearby like marine mammal vocalizations. A significant capability of the NoiseSpotter® is that it can provide information about the location and identity of those sounds in real-time. Three configurations of NoiseSpotter® technology were demonstrated: real-time data collection with data transfer to the Cloud, self-logging data collection with no surface expression, and a drifting version to gather data decoupled from water currents in the area.
NoiseSpotter® platform recovery from the seafloor (left); the NoiseSpotter® surface buoy actively transferring data to the Cloud (top right); and the drifting NoiseSpotter collecting data near the CalWave xWave WEC on the right along with the University of Washington’s DAISY technology on the left (bottom right). (Photos courtesy of Integral Consulting, Inc.)
These demonstrations are made possible by a culmination of several years of research and development by CalWave Power Technologies, marking an important deployment for the advancement of the marine energy industry. Tests like this allow researchers to collect environmental monitoring and performance data around deployed marine energy devices and helping the industry in taking steps toward commercialization. We appreciate our partnership with CalWave Power Technologies and this opportunity to gather empirical data for the industry.
The Triton team extends a special thanks to SIO, particularly to boat captain Brett Pickering and many others who helped make this research possible. Thank you SIO for being a fantastic research partner!
TRITON NEWS
Introducing: Triton Talks Webinar Series
In January 2022, Triton will launch a monthly webinar series diving into the TFiT results and recommendations published in the Journal of Marine Science and Engineering special issue titled "Technology and Methods for Environmental Monitoring of Marine Renewable Energy." In each webinar, a Triton researcher will present on a TFiT research topic, discuss their findings, and host a question and answer session. This webinar series invites marine energy stakeholders, research partners, and anyone who wants to learn about Triton's environmental monitoring research. There will also be an opportunity to contribute to virtual discussions about research on the ecological effects of marine energy. Stay tuned for information on how to register for the first webinar!
From Your Perspective
What questions do you have about the technologies we are testing for the TFiT research?
Triton is designed to support the development and testing of more precise and cost-effective environmental monitoring technologies for marine energy. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory leads Triton on behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Water Power Technologies Office.
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