The worst years on track for whale-ship collisions off the West Coast of the United States were 2018, 2019, and 2021.
Given these trends, there are methods to prevent the issue. Ships that slow to 10 knots in regions with a strong whale presence effectively lessen the threat to whales, according to research.
Whale Safe is an advanced analytics application that provides whale and ship data in place to avert tragic ship accidents with whales.
By detecting whale species and pod locations, AI software observing noises from bright yellow buoys potentially prevents whale casualties. Researchers then validate the information and communicate it to any passing ships, supporting them in avoiding the mammals. Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory and its partners initiated the Whale Safe project, with the first Whale Safe system already placed in the Santa Barbara Channel between the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, as stated on the Whale Safe website.
Every year, ship accidents slaughter about 80 endangered whales along the West Coast, the organization added.
The Whale Safe Project Technology
Every buoy has an inbuilt computer that collects whale noises using an underwater microphone. An Artificial intelligence system then distinguishes the clicks and squeals of certain whale species after relaying the data via satellite within two hours, for which a scientist will evaluate the software's data to ensure the whale noises are accurately recognized. The whales' position is then assessed by evaluating water conditions (through a different machine learning model) and local records of whale sightings. Whenever a ship is in the estimated course of the animals, a warning can be sent to advise the sailors.
West Coast harbors accommodate more than half of all cargo vessel freight in the United States. Researchers believe that around 80 endangered whales, mainly blue, fin, humpback, and gray whales, are perished by ship hits in the region each year as they move to certain feeding sites. The statistics were provided by a study from Business Wire and a research published in Plos One Journal. "Whale-ship accidents continue to be a major cause of mortality for endangered whales, but fatalities have begun to drop with these new types of monitoring technologies and alarm systems," stated Marc Benioff, chairman, and co-CEO of Salesforce.
The Oceanic Initiative in Saving Marine Life
Benioff and his spouse Lynne were responsible for setting up the Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory, a charitable venture sponsored by the University of California, Santa Barbara. Their foundation has a three-step system that takes ocean-related ecological issues reported by the communities and coordinates the necessary scientists and resources to remedy problems. Douglas McCauley, a UCSB professor of ocean science, takes initiative. "Distinct whale populations have different dialects," McCauley noted in The Register. "To make this AI operate in California, it was necessary to train the AI, especially utilizing sounds from all these California whales," Professor McCauley added.
This Artificial Intelligence technology plans to improve on its whale accent. The company intends to bring further AI-powered buoys to plenty of other American coastal regions including Seattle, Vancouver, and San Diego and hasn't ruled out the possibility of broadening the Whale Safe initiative to more worldwide regions in the future.
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