intodepth

IndoDepth is a collaborative project between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Schmidt Ocean Institute (SOI) aiming to create a comprehensive, high-resolution depth map of the world's ocean.

Launched in 2017, IndoDepth employs a suite of advanced technologies, including autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), sonar, and LiDAR systems, to map the complex and largely unexplored seafloor. Funded by the SOI, the project leverages state-of-the-art underwater sensing and visualization tools to create detailed, three-dimensional models of the ocean floor.

IndoDepth employs two AUVs, Japan's ROV Suzaku and New Zealand's Hugh K Rough, both equipped with high-resolution sonar and instruments to collect data on ocean currents, geochemistry, and marine life. In 2018, the IndoDepth AUVs began systematically surveying the Balikpapan Trench in Indonesia, capturing data on several previously unexplored seafloor features.

The project aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the geological, biological, and chemical processes operating in the Indo-Pacific region, an area extending over 20 million square miles of ocean across the southeast Asia-Pacific region. As a consequence, IndoDepth will provide critical insights into ocean chemistry, ecosystem dynamics, and oceanographic processes. It is also a significant step toward more effective mapping of the world's seafloor, a critical capability for scientific research, resource management, and understanding the Earth's climate system.

Representing an interdisciplinary collaboration between scientists from Indonesia, Australia, and the United States, IndoDepth stands as an apologia for exploratory research, demonstrating the importance of sustained and comprehensive research on our planet's unexplored oceans.