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Dr. Phil Hill, former director at the Geological Survey of Canada’s Pacific division, is Ocean Network Canada’s latest visiting scientist.

You’ve probably heard of the “Internet of Things”. It’s a connected network of everyday objects that talk to each other, such as cars, kitchen appliances and heart monitors. But did you know that the Internet of Things also extends deep underwater off Canada’s three coasts? Think of it as a Fitbit for the ocean. Made possible by world-leading Oceans 2.0 data management software, Ocean Networks Canada’s infrastructure is continuously monitoring the pulse and vital signs of our deep sea and coastal environments.

The Canada Foundation for Innovation has supported ONC since 2002. In 2014, Transport Canada, WED, and IBM Canada wisely invested in a vision to take ONC’s decade of deep sea ocean observing science, data, and infrastructure to the next level. After three years of hard work, collaboration, and innovation, this timely investment bore fruit in April 2017 when ONC successfully delivered an impressive suite of Smart Ocean™ Systems infrastructure, services and data product prototypes, positioning Canada as a global leader in ocean technology, data management and responsible ocean management.

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Ocean Networks Canada seafloor and land-based sensors recorded a magnitude 4.8 earthquake in the Strait of Georgia, just before midnight on 29 December.​

Some data archives from the VENUS Observatory in the Salish Sea, encompassing the Strait of Georgia and Saanich Inlet can now be accessed via Oceans 2.0 software tools.

Ocean Networks Canada (ONC), an initiative of the University of Victoria, has further expanded its footprint across Canada with the launch of a new collaboration with the Fundy Ocean Research Centre for Energy (FORCE).

ONC is a world-leader in ocean observing technology supported by Oceans 2.0, its comprehensive data management system developed to provide a vital link between sensors and users around the world. With advanced observatories on the Pacific coast and in the Canadian Arctic, today’s launch on the Atlantic coast establishes ONC’s operations from sea to sea to sea.

Dr. Miriam Römer, a research scientist with the MARUM Centre for Marine Environmental Sciences at the University of Bremen, spent the past 3 months working with Ocean Networks Canada staff scientists analyzing a large and disparate collection of data from Clayoquot Slope.

The biological transition from winter to spring conditions in the Strait of Georgia is characterized by a spring phytoplankton bloom. Understanding the dominant factors influencing the timing of the bloom is therefore the subject of considerable interest.

Multiple Ocean Networks Canada instruments recorded a magnitude 6.6 earquake that struck beneath the seafloor off northern Vancouver Island on the evening of 23 April 2014.

At 04:23 UTC on April 1, 2014, a hydrophone attached to the Ocean Networks Canada cabled observatory recorded very unusual sounds from the Central Strait of Georgia (depth: 300 m).

In the terrestrial world, we rely heavily on optics and our vision, and less so on acoustics and hearing. In the ocean, the opposite is true. In coastal waters, light only travels relatively short distances (5-20m), so marine animals use light for sensing only the very near-field environment, while sound can travel huge distances (1-1000km), and informs marine animals of distant features and events. Marine scientists also take advantage of the efficiency with which sound travels in the ocean, and use it to both investigate and listen to phenomena over long distances.

Passive acoustic monitoring of marine mammals is a growing research theme on both the VENUS and NEPTUNE observatories. University of Victoria Co-op student Jasper Kanes works with the Ocean Networks Canada Innovation Centre (formerly Centre for Enterprise and Engagement, ONCCEE) to process passive acoustic data from their technology demonstrations. Together with John Dorocicz, Acoustic Systems Developer, the two “listeners” publicize the highlights from these data within relevant research communities. 

We have successfully re-deployed the hydrophone system in Strait of Georgia at 170 m. Lloyd’s mirror is nicely represented in this spectrogram from May 2, 2013.

An ongoing collaboration between Ocean Networks Canada and ASL Environmental Science resulted in a test deployment of the new echo-sounder at 300m on the VENUS Strait of Georgia array. The test-deployment is part of the technology demonstration led by Tom Dakin of the Ocean Networks Canada Innovation Centre.