February 4, 2014 — The mysteries of the deep have long intrigued oceanographers and researchers.
A new device created locally could help shed more light on some of these mysteries, its developers and area scientists said.
For more than a decade, the Northeast Fisheries Science Center, working with other researchers and oceanographers, has installed an array of measuring devices on lobster traps.
Temperature gauges, salinity sensors, acoustic listening devices and cameras have been installed, said Jim Manning, who oversees the lobster trap program at the science center in Woods Hole, which is part of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration.
Current meters, in use for the past few years, help gauge current speeds up to hundreds of feet underwater, Manning said.
The various devices help monitor and research the effects of weather patterns, tides, river runoffs and its impact on various fisheries, including lobster.
"Fishermen are very interested in the results. They've been wondering what's going on down there forever," Manning said.
Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times