Orpheus AUV 測試低成本深海採礦勘探
伍茲霍爾海洋研究所衍生公司 orpheus ocean 本月部署了兩台低成本自主潛水器，協助 noaa 繪製太平洋海床地圖。這些價值 20 萬美元的潛水器能下潛 6000 公尺「跳躍」並採集沉積物岩芯，遠低於傳統 1000 萬美元的潛水器成本。此次為期一個月的任務目標覆蓋 8000 平方海里以尋找關鍵礦物。
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution spinoff Orpheus Ocean is deploying two autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) for a NOAA mission to map 8,000 square nautical miles of the Pacific seafloor. The neon submersibles, costing roughly $200,000 each compared to the industry standard of $5-10 million, can dive 6,000 meters to 'hop' along the ocean floor and extract sediment cores. This month-long expedition marks the vehicles' largest test, utilizing the NOAA ship Rainier as a base to survey for critical mineral deposits like cobalt and manganese.