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The buoy was installed in the Gulf of Corcovado, some 1,100
kilometers (684 miles) south of Chile's capital, in early October
and is the first of many planned by the Blue Boat Initiative, a
project designed to protect whales and monitor marine ecosystems.
The area is teeming with marine life and has a large number of blue
whales as well as Sei and Southern right whales during the summer
season in the Southern Hemisphere.
"This is the beginning of a longer road," said Sonia Espanol,
director of the Blue Boat Initiative, adding their hope is to cover
the gulf with at least six buoys.
"From there, there are no limits, the idea is to be able to cover
the entire migratory route of the whales from Antarctica to the
equator."
The area, brimming with fjords and islands, deals with a large
volume of marine traffic responsible for sound pollution and a
threat to sea mammals that depend on sound for navigation and
hunting.
The buoy works by using software called Listening to the Deep Ocean
Environment (LIDO), which monitors sounds and uses artificial
intelligence to identify sea mammals, their type and location in
real time. It then alerts nearby vessels so they can reduce noise
and avoid collisions.
The device also contains sensors for water temperature, oxygen
levels and more to monitor ocean health and the impact of climate
change, which is expected to help guide public policy.
(Reporting by Fabián Andrés Cambero, writing by Alexander Villegas,
editing by Natalia Ramos and Deepa Babington)
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