If ships sailing the seas are harming the underwater environment, there are cables and sensors that can document it. Southern National Laboratories of the INFN – The National Institute of Nuclear Physics of Catania are the protagonists of a new project European Horizon for the protection of the underwater environmentIt's called Lownoiser and it's funded byEuropean Union with 6,3 million euros; is coordinated by the Maritime CleanTech Norway with a consortium of 15 partners, including the Southern National Laboratories of the INFN.
Many scientific studies have revealed the harmful effects of the noise produced from traffic naval both on cetaceans and on fish species of great commercial interest. To guarantee the ecosystem balance and the survival of many marine species, it is necessary to study how to reduce the acoustic noise of ships. Shipowners are also committed to seeking solutions reasonable and are looking forward to new applications. They are called to collaborate and will have to adapt many features of their cargoes so as not to be perceived as destroyers of underwater fauna. The crucial point is the technologies. "We want the technologies developed during the project to help safeguard the marine ecosystems of our oceans for future generations," he said Ada Jacobsen, CEO of Maritime CleanTech.
The cables off the coast of Sicily
The Lownoiser consortium will involve leading companies in the shipbuilding and maritime services industries. They will work with scientists and researchers for 48 monthsThe Southern Laboratories have been given the task of developing real-time monitoring systems using technology Distributed Acoustic Sensing (Das), which they already have. The work can count on "the skills of the researchers and on the extraordinary network of submarine cables and sensors that the Southern Laboratories have installed off the coast of Sicily", he explained Giorgio Rich good, project manager for the INFN.
The Italians have been farsighted in applying detection structures on the seabed that have already provided important data. The final point of arrival of this new European expenditure, with an Italian recognition, is to have less impactful navigation and more sustainable maritime transport. In the meantime, we study.
