Intro
The ocean is a vital component of the Earth’s ecosystem and is crucial for human survival. It provides us with food, medicine, and resources, as well as plays a critical role in regulating the Earth’s climate. However, the ocean is facing significant challenges, such as plastic pollution, overfishing, climate change, and habitat destruction, which threaten marine ecosystems and the services they provide. To address these challenges, researchers, scientists, and policymakers are turning to innovative technologies like AI to monitor, analyze, and protect the ocean. AI offers a powerful tool to help us better understand and manage our marine resources, and it is playing an increasingly important role in ocean conservation efforts. AI algorithms can analyze large volumes of data, including satellite images, underwater sensor data, and acoustic data, to provide researchers with valuable insights into the dynamics of the ocean and the health of marine ecosystems. As the ocean faces increasing threats, the application of AI in ocean conservation has the potential to provide us with the tools we need to better understand and manage this critical ecosystem.
How AI is being used
One of the ways AI is being used to help our oceans is by monitoring and analyzing ocean patterns. AI algorithms are being used to analyze satellite images and underwater sensor data to track ocean currents, weather patterns, and identify potential hazards such as harmful algae blooms. This information helps researchers and scientists better understand the dynamics of the ocean and to identify potential threats to marine ecosystems. For example, the Environmental Intelligence Unit (EIU) is using AI to analyze satellite images and sensor data to track and predict the movements of ocean currents. This information can help fishermen and shipping companies to navigate the ocean more safely, as well as help researchers and scientists to better understand the dynamics of the ocean.
AI is also useful in monitoring and protecting marine life. Algorithms can analyze underwater video footage and acoustic data to track the movements and behaviors of marine animals, which helps researchers better understand marine ecosystems and identify threats to marine life. The Nature Conservancy employs AI to monitor the movements of endangered whale species. AI algorithms analyze acoustic data to identify the distinct sounds of different whale species, which enables researchers to track their movements and monitor their health.
Another way AI is helping protect our oceans’ is by helping combat illegal fishing. According to the United Nations, illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing accounts for up to 26 million tons of fish caught each year, which poses a significant threat to marine ecosystems. Algorithms can analyze satellite images and acoustic data to track the movements of fishing vessels and identify illegal fishing activities. The Global Fishing Watch initiative uses AI to monitor the movements of fishing vessels and identify potential illegal fishing activities. The system uses satellite images and radar data to track fishing vessels’ movements, and AI algorithms analyze the data to identify suspicious activities, such as fishing in protected areas or vessels that turn off their tracking systems to avoid detection.
The fourth way AI is being actively used by conservationists is to help clean up plastic waste. Plastic pollution is a significant threat to marine ecosystems, with millions of tons of plastic waste ending up in the ocean each year. One project that employs AI to combat plastic pollution is the Ocean Cleanup initiative. The Ocean Cleanup initiative uses AI-powered underwater drones to detect and remove plastic debris from the ocean. The drones are equipped with cameras and AI algorithms that can identify and track plastic debris and then deploy a net to collect the debris. The system has been successfully tested in the Pacific Ocean and is being scaled up for wider use.
In addition to cleaning up plastic waste, AI can help mitigate the effects of climate change on the ocean. Algorithms can predict the impact of rising sea levels on coastal communities, model the effects of ocean acidification on marine ecosystems, and optimize renewable energy sources like wind and wave power. The Deep Learning Ocean initiative uses AI to model the effects of climate change on the ocean. The system analyzes satellite images and sensor data to model the impacts of climate change on marine ecosystems, such as the effects of ocean acidification on coral reefs. The system can also predict the impact of rising sea levels on coastal communities.
Conclusion
As has been demonstrated, the ocean is a vital part of our planet, and it is facing significant challenges that threaten its health and the services it provides to humans. However, with the help of innovative technologies like AI, we can better understand and manage our marine resources. As we continue to face new and emerging threats to our oceans, the application of AI in ocean conservation has the potential to provide us with the tools we need to better understand and manage this critical ecosystem, ultimately ensuring a healthy and sustainable future for our planet.
Hi Chase, really cool to hear an application of AI outside of the business and sports arenas. I was pretty shocked to read how much illegal fishing is going on. I wonder how the Global Fishing Watch initiative has teeth to be able to enforce or counter suspicious illegal activity. I would like to read more on the environmental improvements and advancements that AI can make such as the ones you mentioned, plastic waste and renewable energy.
Hey Chase, I don’t know how we did this but we both did blogs on digital innovation in ocean conservation lol. Anyways I thought the use of satellites and analytical software to find illegal fishing activities to fight overfishing of areas was very cool. A company I talked about in mine called Unseen labs is a French company that uses sats to track boats and protect oceans and waterways. They actually launched a couple of satellites recently with SpaceX down in Cape Canaveral I am pretty sure. Cool blog post.
Whoops lol. I am about to give yours a read! I am in an online Marine Biology class at the moment and thought about it while I was doing PackBcak responses for the class this week.
Really cool to see how AI is helping to innovate in conservation. I forget what the name of the company is but they sell clothing made from recycled ocean plastics and they use it to fund their cleanup efforts. It’s likely worth a search but it would be great to see in the future if companies like the Global Fishing Watch or the EIU ever make their technology free use for other smaller conservationists to use. Also its nice to see companies like the GFW doing something about illegal fishing, although its probably not as entertaining as Whale Wars used to be.
To me, the ocean seems like such a vast and scary place with so many unknowns. AI is helping address those unknowns. I can’t wait to see how our understanding and relationship with the ocean changes overtime with the use of AI.
Hey Chase, such an interesting blog this week! I love aquatic life so much that my favorite animal is a manatee. It’s sad to see the destruction of the ocean habitats due to population and overfishing. It’s great to see they are able to use AI to predict and locate life threatening oceanic events and pollution.
Love the post Chase! Highlights how AI can play a part in protecting our oceans and that is absolutely fascinating. Hate to see all the alarming issues our oceans face like plastic pollution, overfishing, and climate change. The use of AI is a great step towards preserving the health of our oceans. The application of AI has tremendous potential in ocean conservation and should help us better understand and manage marine resources. Excited to see this develop for the future.
Hi Chase, I really enjoyed reading your post! It’s awesome to see how AI is helping to save the oceans and the wildlife inside them. For example, I find it very interesting how it can be used to help prevent illegal fishing and monitoring the movements of endangered whale species. I am curious how many other AI methods will be introduced in the future to further help with the preservation of our oceans. Overall, nice post!
Hello Chase! I loved reading this post. The ocean is a big part of our ecosystem, but it’s sad to see the problems such as plastic pollution affecting the way we live. As AI technologies improve, it will be interesting to see how much of a benefit it can provide to improving our ecosystem as a whole.
Hey Chase great post! I think its great that people are thinking about ways to apply this new technology in a conservational way to preserve our environment. I’m honestly kind of surprised this hasn’t been talked about more. It is also crazy how we still struggle with plastic and other pollution in our oceans considering how much technology has improved in the last few decades. I’m glad to see that AI can be used to provide a small solution to an ever increasing problem.
Hey Chase, this is a very interesting post. It’s so cool to see just how many different aspects of our lives AI can help with, including your blog post about working towards saving our oceans. I’m currently taking a Marine Biology class for a free elective, but I’ve learned a little more about the issues we cause to our oceans. Using AI to help with these problems should be more looked into. You talked about how we have used it to predict ocean currents to help fishermen be safer and work in a better way for our environment. I might have to bring up this blog post in that class!
Hey Chase, one fascinating thing about A.I. is that it can be built upon current technologies and add various functions that could not have been achieved with the technology alone. This has come to light in the maritime industry as satellites with AI have started helping fishermen know how to navigate around ocean currents. This helps them avoid situations such as fishing in illegal areas which is also mentioned above.
Hi Chase! The Ocean Cleanup initiative is an extremely interesting solution. There are metals on the Earth’s floor that could be used to combat the impact we have on natural resources, however, the harvesting process may too disrupt the natural world. Currently, they are in the production stage of using AI tools to derive a solution. I am curious if there are cross-studies on how AI can tailor its benefit to protecting the most abundant natural state.