Application of teams of usvs for cyanobacteria monitoring: initial steps

Abstract

Reservoirs and other water masses could suffer dangerous situations because cyanobacteria blooms. It is convenient for public safety, and for research purposes, to be able to detect the presence of this bacterium in the water, and to monitor its evolution along time. When possible, it would be useful to predict a bloom in the near future. And, in case of having a bloom, it would be relevant to have an eye on its dynamics Our research proposes the use of a specialized team of USVs for these objectives. A series of initial steps has been accomplished, for having microbiology experts on board, and for developing strategies and infrastructure for this project. Standard lawn-mower procedures were precluded: it is more a scenario for intelligent methods, based on models and data-driven explorations of water masses. Some studies in simulation, and experiments with USVs have been initiated.