(Press-News.org) InVADER Mission to Test its Robotic Laser Divebot on a Deep-Sea Expedition
Team to test technologies for use in future planetary exploration while providing data to survey deep-sea ecosystems and minerals on Earth
May 11, 2023, Mountain View, CA – A team of scientists and engineers from the SETI Institute, Impossible Sensing, NASA JPL, and other institutions will test their innovative robotic laser system on a deep-sea expedition aboard the E/V Nautilus. The mission, called InVADER (In-situ Vent Analysis Divebot for Exobiology Research), aims to advance technologies to explore, characterize and sample the seabed here on Earth. In particular, InVADER’s Laser Divebot will find marine minerals and catalog biodiversity in the seabed faster and more affordably than ever.
“Our technology will revolutionize oceanography like digital photography disrupted film photography,” said Pablo Sobron, SETI Institute research scientist and project lead. “Scientists will no longer have to collect and ship samples to a lab and wait weeks for the results. InVADER will do it in just a few hours and with zero environmental impact. This approach will allow scientists to learn more about the ocean much faster, which is essential for protecting it.”
If successful, such technologies could be used to explore ocean worlds in our solar system, such as Europa and Enceladus, to help us understand whether they could be habitable and host life.
The E/V Nautilus expedition will, for the first time, deploy InVADER’s Laser Divebot in the Kingman Reef and Palmyra Atoll region from May 16 to June 14, 2023. These waters host some of the most pristine marine ecosystems on Earth. In addition to providing a site for testing technologies for planetary exploration, the team will contribute to a better understanding of the deep-water resources and biodiversity of never-before-seen seamounts and habitats, which will inform the management and science needs of the region.
The Laser Divebot will be mounted on ROV Hercules. The pair will map areas of the seafloor with remarkable speed and accuracy. The heart of the innovation is a cutting-edge laser spectroscopy suite that brings long-range and ultra-high sensitivity laser Raman and laser fluorescence spectroscopy to the seafloor for the first time.
The team plans to perform multiple dives with the Laser Divebot during the expedition and create rapid compositional maps in-situ using its state-of-the-art laser spectroscopy suite. These maps will provide unprecedented insights into the seabed's mineral resources and microbial metabolisms. The team will also bring back fluids and mineral samples for further lab analysis.
The InVADER project is funded by a NASA Planetary Science and Technology from Analog Research (PSTAR) grant. Dr. Pablo Sobron, a SETI Institute physicist and Founder of Impossible Sensing, and Dr. Laurie Barge, a NASA JPL research scientist, lead the project. The project also involves collaborators from the University of Washingon’s Applied Physics Laboratory, the University of Hawai’i, the University of Southern California, the State University of New York—Stony Brook, the University of Shouthampton, the Lunar and Planetary Institute, Oak Crest Institute of Science, Honeybee Robotics, Impossible Sensing, and the Geological Survey of Belgium.
The NOAA’s Ocean Exploration Consortium Initiative and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s Marine Minerals Program provided additional funding to develop and deploy the technology.
The expedition will be live-streamed on https://nautiluslive.org/cruise/na149. For more information about the InVADER project, visit https://invader-mission.org/.
About the SETI Institute
Founded in 1984, the SETI Institute is a non-profit, multi-disciplinary research and education organization whose mission is to lead humanity’s quest to understand the origins and prevalence of life and intelligence in the Universe and to share that knowledge with the world. Its research encompasses the physical and biological sciences and leverages expertise in data analytics, machine learning and advanced signal detection technologies. The SETI Institute is a distinguished research partner for industry, academia and government agencies, including NASA and NSF.
Contact information
Rebecca McDonald
Director of Communications
SETI Institute
rmcdonald@seti.org
END
InVADER mission to test its robotic laser divebot on a deep-sea expedition
Team to test technologies for use in future planetary exploration while providing data to survey deep-sea ecosystems and minerals on Earth
2023-05-11
[Attachments] See images for this press release:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Rensselaer researcher uses artificial intelligence to discover new materials for advanced computing
2023-05-11
A team of researchers led by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Trevor David Rhone, assistant professor in the Department of Physics, Applied Physics, and Astronomy, has identified novel van der Waals (vdW) magnets using cutting-edge tools in artificial intelligence (AI). In particular, the team identified transition metal halide vdW materials with large magnetic moments that are predicted to be chemically stable using semi-supervised learning. These two-dimensional (2D) vdW magnets have potential applications in data storage, spintronics, and even quantum computing.
Rhone ...
Having dementia and reduction in social participation are associated with increased depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic
2023-05-11
Tokyo, May 8, 2023 -- An increased risk of depression and anxiety among US older adults with dementia and poor activity participation has been demonstrated through an analysis of data from the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS), a nationally representative population-based study.
These findings were reached by a team of researchers from the Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Exploratory Oncology Research and Clinical Trial Center in National Cancer Center, and Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, Japan. This study is published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease Reports 7(1).
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) ...
Targeting uncontrolled inflammation may hold the key to treating therapy-resistant cancers
2023-05-11
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (May 11, 2023) — Van Andel Institute scientists have pinpointed how a specific gene mutation triggers an inflammatory cascade that may drive development of treatment-resistant cancers.
The new findings, published today in Molecular Cell, reveal for the first time the molecular circuitry by which mutations in the gene STK11 cause inflammation to spiral out of control. The resulting chemical firestorm damages healthy cells and can enable cancer development. Tumors that lose the STK11 gene are tough ...
With new experimental method, researchers probe spin structure in 2D materials for first time
2023-05-11
PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — For two decades, physicists have tried to directly manipulate the spin of electrons in 2D materials like graphene. Doing so could spark key advances in the burgeoning world of 2D electronics, a field where super-fast, small and flexible electronic devices carry out computations based on quantum mechanics.
Standing in the way is that the typical way in which scientists measure the spin of electrons — an essential behavior that gives everything in the physical universe its structure — usually doesn’t work in 2D materials. This makes it incredibly difficult to fully understand the materials and propel forward technological ...
These sounds are out of this world! #ASA184
2023-05-11
CHICAGO, May 11, 2023 – You may know how other planets look, like the rust orange, dusty surface of Mars or the vibrant teal of Uranus. But what do those planets sound like?
Timothy G. Leighton from the University of Southampton in the U.K. designed a software program that produces extraterrestrial environmental sounds and predicts how human voices might change in distant worlds. He will demonstrate his work at the upcoming 184th Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America, running May 8-12 at the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile Hotel. His presentation will take place ...
New composite strategy leaves coverage questions behind, researchers report
2023-05-11
Answers could be cloudy for researchers using Landsat images to investigate the coverage of the continental United States. The National Land Cover Database (NLCD) are useful products for scientists to understand how things like tree canopy and road coverage changes over time, but something as simple as cloud coverage can be misinterpreted in the satellite images as a significant surface coverage change. How can researchers be sure they’re getting a truly representative understanding of any one area?
The answer lies in composite ...
Comparison of depression and anxiety following self-reported COVID-19–like symptoms vs SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity
2023-05-11
About The Study: In this study of more than 45,000 individuals drawn from the French general population, COVID-19–like symptoms, but not SARS-CoV-2 infection, during the first months of the pandemic were associated with an increased occurrence of subsequent depression and anxiety eight months or more after the occurrence of COVID-19–like symptoms, even when SARS-CoV-2 serologic test results were negative.
Authors: Alexandra Rouquette, M.D., Ph.D., of the Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines in Paris, is the corresponding ...
Trends in the prevalence of functional limitations among cancer survivors
2023-05-11
About The Study: The number of U.S. cancer survivors with self-reported functional limitation has more than doubled during the past 20 years, with relatively less growth in the number of limitation-free survivors.
Authors: Vishal R. Patel, B.S., of the University of Texas at Austin, is the corresponding author.
To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/
(doi:10.1001/jamaoncol.2023.1180)
Editor’s Note: Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, ...
New Utah study finds antibiotic stewardship program significantly reduced prescribing rates of antibiotics at urgent care centers in promising initiative to curb antibiotic overuse
2023-05-11
Overuse of antibiotic prescriptions for patients with upper respiratory illnesses at urgent care clinics in the United States has been an ongoing challenge, but a new study led by researchers at two Utah health systems – Intermountain Health and University of Utah Health – finds that a targeted approach utilizing antibiotic stewardship practices significantly reduces overuse of these medications.
In this Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) funded study, published today in JAMA Network ...
Obesity accelerates loss of COVID-19 vaccination immunity, study finds
2023-05-11
University of Cambridge media release
Obesity accelerates loss of COVID-19 vaccination immunity, study finds
UNDER STRICT EMBARGO UNTIL 16:00 (UK TIME) / 11:00 (US ET) ON THURSDAY 11 MAY 2023
The protection offered by COVID-19 vaccination declines more rapidly in people with severe obesity than in those with normal weight, scientists at the Universities of Cambridge and Edinburgh have found. The study suggests that people with obesity are likely to need more frequent booster doses to maintain their immunity.
Clinical trials have shown that COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective at reducing symptoms, hospitalisation and deaths ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
New West Health-Gallup survey finds incoming Trump administration faces high public skepticism over plans to lower healthcare costs
Reading signs: New method improves AI translation of sign language
Over 97 million US residents exposed to unregulated contaminants in their drinking water
New large-scale study suggests no link between common brain malignancy and hormone therapy
AI helps to identify subjective cognitive decline during the menopause transition
Machine learning assisted plasmonic absorbers
Healthy lifestyle changes shown to help low back pain
Waking up is not stressful, study finds
Texas A&M AgriLife Research aims for better control of widespread tomato spotted wilt virus
THE LANCET DIABETES & ENDOCRINOLOGY: Global Commission proposes major overhaul of obesity diagnosis, going beyond BMI to define when obesity is a disease.
Floating solar panels could support US energy goals
Long before the L.A. fires, America’s housing crisis displaced millions
Breaking barriers: Collaborative research studies binge eating disorders in older Hispanic women
UVA receives DURIP grant for cutting-edge ceramic research system
Gene editing extends lifespan in mouse model of prion disease
Putting a lid on excess cholesterol to halt bladder cancer cell growth
Genetic mutation linked to higher SARS-CoV-2 risk
UC Irvine, Columbia University researchers invent soft, bioelectronic sensor implant
Harnessing nature to defend soybean roots
Yes, college students gain holiday weight too—but in the form of muscle not fat
Beach guardians: How hidden microbes protect coastal waters in a changing climate
Rice researchers unlock new insights into tellurene, paving the way for next-gen electronics
New potential treatment for inherited blinding disease retinitis pigmentosa
Following a 2005 policy, episiotomy rates have reduced in France without an overall increase in anal sphincter injuries during labor, with more research needed to confirm the safest rate of episiotomi
Rats anticipate location of food-guarding robots when foraging
The American Association for Anatomy announces their Highest Distinctions of 2025
Diving deep into dopamine
Automatic speech recognition on par with humans in noisy conditions
PolyU researchers develop breakthrough method for self-stimulated ejection of freezing droplets, unlocking cost-effective applications in de-icing
85% of Mexican Americans with dementia unaware of diagnosis, outpacing overall rate
[Press-News.org] InVADER mission to test its robotic laser divebot on a deep-sea expeditionTeam to test technologies for use in future planetary exploration while providing data to survey deep-sea ecosystems and minerals on Earth