Anthropogenic noise is a major source of pollution in the ocean. There are many sources of temporary noise, such as pile-driving and seismic exploration, but there are also permanent/recurring noises, such as the pumps in desalination plants or seawater air-conditioning systems.

The most common source of noise in the ocean is maritime traffic. The PIAQUO project proposes solutions to reduce this noise and its effects on the marine ecosystem.

In this project, ALSEAMAR has used 4 SEAEXPLORER underwater gliders at sea to detect and locate marine mammals (dolphins, sperm whales and fin whales) present in the PELAGOS sanctuary and to warn ships of their presence using the REPCET® system.

The cumulative time spent on this mission is approximately 1 year (4 missions of 4 gliders over 25 days).

From a technological point of view, this study demonstrated the ability of SEAEXPLORER gliders to carry out mammal reconnaissance and positioning missions.

This mission also led ALSEAMAR to improve their intelligent data processing solution in order to simplify the implementation of specific algorithms: this gave rise to the ‘AURIS’ platform designated by ALSEAMAR.

From a scientific point of view, this study showed the density of species along the route over several seasons. It also showed that marine mammals positions can be transmitted directly to REPCET in order to better protect them from the risks of collision with ships.