This document discusses how researchers have used Wave Gliders, autonomous ocean robots, in various ocean science projects after receiving National Science Foundation grants. It profiles several researchers who have used Wave Gliders to monitor fish populations, test acoustic applications, create a real-time seismic observatory, measure strain buildup in subduction zones, record ocean soundscapes, sample chlorophyll blooms, observe air-sea dynamics in the Southern Ocean, and collect measurements in remote regions. Liquid Robotics, the company that developed Wave Gliders, offers discounted access to researchers to support ocean science.

1. www.liquid-robotics.com
After the Grant:
Researchers and their
Wave Gliders
June 2017
www.liquid-robotics.com

2. Imagine you can send a robot out into the
ocean for up to a year to collect and analyze
data in real time?
What would you do with it?
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3. | Company Confidential2
That’s the question that has been inspiring
researchers to do creative work with Wave Gliders
for years.

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Since the first National Science Foundation (NSF) grant that
included funding for use of a Wave Glider, researchers have
received grants for Wave Gliders to sample chlorophyll
blooms, monitor marine life, explore polar seas, and more.
Let’s take a look at a few of them…

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The Researcher:
Dr. Charles Greene
The Institution:
Cornell University
The Mission:
Received the first National
Science Foundation (NSF) grant
that included funding for use of a
Wave Glider (2010), to better
understand fish populations
Status:
Published A Wave Glider
Approach to Fisheries Acoustics:
Transforming How We Monitor
the Nation’s Commercial Fisheries
in the 21st Century in
Oceanography
Imagine the benefit of augmenting or even replacing
expensive ship operations that currently run echo-
sounder transects for fisheries surveys with a fleet of
cost efficient gliders that could provide better spatial
and temporal coverage.”
From the grant abstract
“

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The Researcher:
Dr. Brian Bingham
The Institutions:
The University of Hawaii &
Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution (WHOI)
The Mission:
Experiments and analysis to
quantify the performance of this
new platform for acoustic
applications
Status:
Published Passive and active
acoustics using an autonomous
wave glider in the Journal of Field
Robotics
The acoustic survey of the self-noise shows that the
platform radiates very little noise, making it an ideal
platform for passive monitoring…The active acoustic
evaluations show that the wave glider is a capable
platform to act as an acoustic navigation and
communication gateway for other submerged assets.”
From the published paper

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The Researcher:
Dr. Jonathan Berger
The Institution:
Scripps Institute of Oceanography
The Mission:
Build and test a prototype for a
real-time seismic observatory
transmitting sensor data from the
ocean bottom without a moored
buoy or a cable to shore
Status:
Published An ocean bottom
seismic observatory with near
real-time telemetry
The breakthrough technology that makes this system
possible is an autonomous surface vehicle called a
Wave Glider, which harvests wave and solar energy for
motive and electrical power.”
From the published paper

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The Researcher:
Dr. David Chadwell
The Institution:
Scripps Institute of Oceanography
The Mission:
Measure the elastic strain buildup
in subduction zones, to better
understand potential earthquake
and tsunami risk
Status:
Research in progress
By measuring the slow buildup of this strain offshore, a
better understanding of the potential earthquake and
tsunami risk can be established. Small (surfboard-size)
wave- and solar-powered platforms can now replace
large ships for much data collection.”
From the grant abstract
“

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The Researcher:
Dr. Joseph Luczkovich
The Institution:
East Carolina University
The Mission:
Record the soundscape of the
ocean, identify areas where there
is a lot of biological diversity, and
ultimately help protect and
conserve threatened species
Status:
Updates available on university
website
It's been working just perfectly and it's going to expand
our research capabilities along the coasts…so that we
can study fish, whales, dolphins, plankton and currents,
along with other measurements, without actually
having to be physically present on the water.”
From the video

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The Researcher:
Dr. Tracy Villareal
The Institution:
The University of Texas Marine
Science Institute
The Mission:
Sample chlorophyll blooms in
remote parts of the open ocean,
using their Wave Glider, named
“Honey Badger”
Status:
Updates available on university
website
The mission of the Honey Badger is to sample the late
summer chlorophyll bloom that develops near 30°N,
with the goal of using the camera and LISST-Holo to try
to identify species in the blooms and then follow the
development of phytoplankton aggregates.”
From the university website

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The Researchers:
Dr. James Girton
Dr. James Thomson
The Institution:
University of Washington
The Mission:
Observe air-sea dynamics in the
Southern Ocean with the goal of
improving climate models
Status:
Research in progress
The coupled air-sea dynamics of the Southern Ocean
play a critical role in the ocean’s transport and storage
of heat and carbon dioxide and the response of these
processes to climate change. This project advances our
capability to observe air-sea dynamics under winds
through a 6-month deployment of a wave glider.”
From the grant abstract
“

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The Researcher:
Dr. Sophia Merrifield
The Institutions:
Scripps Institute of Oceanography
Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institute (WHOI)
The Mission:
Collect oceanographic and
meteorological measurements in
the Southern Ocean; demonstrate
whether autonomous platforms
can help fill this observational gap
Status:
Research in progress
Despite its importance, the region is under sampled largely due to its remote
location and severe conditions. With the maturing of autonomous platforms, there
is now an opportunity to collect high-resolution spatial and temporal
measurements in the full range of conditions characteristic of the Southern Ocean.”
From the grant abstract

13. Wave Glider for Researchers Program
Liquid Robotics was founded by researchers who wanted to find a reliable and persistent
way to monitor humpback whales. Ever since, ocean research has been part of our DNA,
and we continue that commitment today with the Wave Gliders for Researchers
Program.
We offer non-profit research institutions and universities:
> An open platform for sensor integration
> Access to a robust community of users
> Discounted pricing on Wave Gliders
Learn More
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14. Is a Wave Glider a good fit for your research?
www.liquid-robotics.com/checklist
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