Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events Sentinel Blog Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events Sentinel Blog The Sentinel Mission is poised to change the world in many positive ways. Demonstrate the newest-generation Teledyne by circumnavigating the world’s oceans pushing the boundaries of ocean observation and build an ocean of data. Inspire communities across the world to participate in the global conservation through expanding ocean literacy, education, and policy in order to create an inclusive and equitable ocean for all Improve our understanding of the evolving ocean in the face of climate change Create a global team from diverse cultures around the world to help make the Sentinel Mission a reality   Our motivation is grounded by the United Nations Ocean Decade. The UN Ocean Decade consists of 10 challenges. The idea is promote sustainable practices. The Ocean Decade challenges include topics such as decreasing pollution, fixing ecosystems, and protecting communities from climate change (full list is  here). Gliders can play a crucial role in the Ocean Decade. Countries across the world set a wide variety of sustainability goals for the Ocean Decade which require different types of data to support their implementation. Thanks to the versatility of gliders, they can be retrofitted with different sensors and scientific instruments to collect ocean data relevant to multiple societal needs on a single deployment.  Glider data networks combined with robust ocean models will revolutionize our ability to understand and forecast the ocean conditions to support society.           From global concerns such as garbage patches and climate change to regional environmental concerns like coral reef ecosystem collapses, gliders are becoming a frontline tool for measuring the issues our oceans face. Here are a short handful of ways in which gliders are actively being used to support global research initiatives: Gliders use dissolved oxygen sensors to measure hypoxic conditions in the Gulf of Mexico to investigate the cause of major fish killings, which negatively impact commercial fishing industries and ocean ecosystems Chlorophyll sensors used to detect phytoplankton density help gliders measure biological activity in different regions to research climate impacts on ecosystem productivity Temperature sensors on gliders set beneath hurricane and typhoon storm cells help measure the speed and intensity in real time to better forecast their impacts pH sensors on gliders help measure ocean acidification in crucial environments such as oyster beds and coral reefs to better understand the rates at which our oceans are acidifying           Not only do gliders support short duration projects through their mission deployments, but the data they collect also contributes towards long-term data collection projects which help build a rich informational map of how our oceans are changing. Long-term and continuous data collection infrastructure in the oceans is how we can both address the many problems our oceans face today and also prevent disasters in the future.

Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events Sentinel Blog Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events Sentinel Blog The challenges Sentinel faces difficulties that have plagued sailors and scientists for hundreds of years. Ocean navigation requires a tremendous amount of resources backed by the support of and knowing where/when to resupply when on the ocean. This is analogous to the Sentinel glider’s battery life. It is necessary to know how far the glider can travel and creating a safe travel plan. Knowing how far we can get before we need to recharge, while keeping a safety buffer, is one challenge our team is working on.          Another challenge revolves around animal encounters. From whales getting to close, shark attacks, barnacles encrusting surfaces, and the threat of carrying invasive species, there are many ways marine life can affect the success of the mission. Our team has been working diligently to implement solutions to reduce the chances of these potentially catastrophic events. A Slocum Glider encrusted in barnacles and scratched on its science payload due to a giant squid attack

Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events Sentinel Blog Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events Sentinel Blog Scientific Mission Demonstrate a novel global ocean observing capacity using a novel technology capable of sustaining a presence in the sea. Enhance ocean observing systems and advance our understanding of global circulation patterns. Utilize real-time data to support forecasting of ocean hazards (such as hurricanes) and strengthen community resilience to natural disasters. Educational Mission Build a global student community using an AUV technology during the Sentinel’s voyage around the world. Use the Sentinel Mission to raise awareness and inspire global citizenship in protecting our shared marine resources. Inspire student leadership in environmental sustainability and global equity through the strengthening of international partnerships and the free and open sharing of knowledge. Exploration Mission Have the Sentinel embarks on the worlds first AUV-powered circumnavigation navigation. Lead efforts to promote society’s ocean literacy. Champion the development of a sustainable and equitable ocean economy to provide data-driven solutions in line with the goals of the New Blue Economy and United Nations Ocean Decade.

Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity The Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity The Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events Click the image below to see the live map of ocean conditions we use to plan the Sentinel’svoyage! Sentinel Mission GIS Webmap (arcgis.com) 

Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity The Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity The Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events The Scarlet Knight was a challenge from Dr. Rick Spinrad, who encouraged Rutgers to go bigger. The idea was to go above and beyond the current capabilities of gliders and cross the Atlantic Ocean. There were problems, hesitations, challenges, and doubts, but none of those were enough to stop the team from shying away from this task. After much planning and deliberating, it was soon after where RU 17 was underway. Off of the coast of New Jersey, scientists carefully deployed The Scarlet Knight and prepared for the journey to Spain. Soon after its deployment, before it was able to reach Spain, RU 17 was lost just off the coast of the Azores. This setback was a positive, however, showing the students and faculty at Rutgers that making it even that far was possible. The mission was restarted with glider RU 27. The path of the Scarlet Knight loosely followed the path of Christopher Columbus’ ship, The Pinta, after his transatlantic journey 531 years ago. Journeying across the Atlantic, RU27 climbed and dove 22,000 times before finally reaching Baiona, Spain. While the ocean is large and vast, the Scarlet Knight was able to cross the Atlantic Ocean with the same amount of energy a car uses to travel 6.3 miles. After surfacing for the last time, The Scarlet Knight was brought aboard by Spanish and American government officials, Rutgers faculty, school children, and residents of surrounding communities. After being brought back home, The Scarlet Knight enjoyed some time on display in the Museum of Natural History’s former Sant Ocean Hall. Back in 2012, students from the same class, then known as Crossing the Atlantic,, were in charge of organizing, planning, and detailing the ins and outs of this mission. From creating websites to getting the glider in the water, the students were the driving force of the Atlantic Crossing. These students were involved in piloting the glider through its 221 day journey, checking daily weather and current patterns to evaluate journey status, and were involved in the deployment and landing of RU27. The Scarlet Knight engaged many, but the way that students in the United States and Spain were able to connect, even an ocean apart, made this mission even more beautiful. All of this, if we knew it or not, was in preparation for circumnavigating the globe.

Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity The Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity The Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events Douglas Webb, Oceanographer Emeritus at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, is a visionary leader that has changed oceanography over the last half-century. He pioneered the development of buoyancy systems (floats and gliders) which have revolutionized the way scientists approach gathering ocean data. Doug Webb lived adjacent to Henry Stommel, arguably the most important oceanographer of the 20th century, and they often discussed/debated the future of exploring the world’s ocean. These discussions were the inspiration for a manuscript published in 1988 by Henry Stommel – “The Slocum Mission”. The manuscript envisioned long-duration underwater robots conducting research across the globe as they sailed under the control of graduate students remotely. In the late 1990’s, Doug Webb developed and tested the first Slocum glider in Tuckerton, New Jersey, working with Rutgers oceanographers. The Slocum glider was given its namesake after Joshua Slocum, who was the first man to circumnavigate the world alone. This initial test flight has blossomed into a multidecadal partnership between Teledyne Webb Research and Rutgers University’s Center for Ocean Observing Leadership (RU COOL). Since then, the partnership has conducted glider deployments around the world to push the boundaries of modern day research. Today, Rutgers and Teledyne continue seeking to meet the challenge issued by Stommel with a new mission. Building on the success of the Scarlet Knight mission in 2009 – where Rutgers undergraduates piloted a Slocum glider across the Atlantic Ocean basin in what became noted as one of the most important robotic achievements in history – a series of global ‘Challenger’ missions were subsequently launched. These missions expanded upon the Scarlet Knight’s demonstration as Rutgers students used Slocum gliders to circle the South Atlantic Basin, fly between Australia and Sri Lanka, and explore new frontiers of the ocean. Now, on a mission to truly circumnavigate the world with a glider, RU COOL and Rutgers undergraduates in partnership with Teledyne Webb Research now seek to initiate the global Sentinel Mission. This mission will test a novel new class of glider, conduct a global mission of human partnership, and provide a unique learning experience for students around the world.

Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity The Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events Sentinel Home The Sentinel Mission Flight Viewer Our Goals Our Challenges UN Ocean Decade What is a Glider? What Gliders Can Do Slocum Gliders The Sentinel Glider History Doug Webb and Henry Stommel’s Challenge to Humanity The Scarlet Knight’s Atlantic Crossing Our Team Topics in Marine Science Teledyne Technologies Get Involved Social Media Mission Donors Outreach Events A sentinel is defined as a guardian who keeps watch. The Sentinel Glider earned its name for being engineered to keep watch of the ocean and provide key scientific information needed to save the world from climate driven disasters. The Sentinel Glider is the next evolution in our ability to explore the world’s oceans. Developed by the Teledyne Webb Research Lab, it is an upgrade from the previous Slocum Glider in every aspect – from the distance it can travel in one journey to the amount of weight it can carry in its payload. The improvements made within the Sentinel Glider will allow for more research to be conducted with gliders across the world. Improvements such as the increased payload will allow for more instruments to be carried in one deployment, expanding how much data the glider can collect. Additionally, larger batteries mean that deployments can last longer and go further than ever before which expands the scope of where a mission can go. Additionally, an increased speed means that more distance can be covered in one deployment, making the vast oceans much easier to collect large data samples on. These are just some of the benefits researchers will have as Sentinel Gliders begin being deployed across the ocean! The first operational Sentinel Glider was given to the Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences at Rutgers University for a mission: complete the world’s first circumnavigation mission with an autonomous underwater vehicle. This tremendous task expands upon previous successes in completing the first trans-Atlantic glider mission in 2008, and Rutgers students and faculty are ecstatic at the chance to make history once more. The idea of a robot traveling across the entire ocean was previously an impossible task due to the extreme distances it would need to cover – ultimately traveling thousands of miles without any ability to stop and be recharged or inspected for potential problems. This is now a possibility with the Sentinel Glider, whose range and power capacity has been massively upgraded from previous glider models. With the Sentinel Glider, we are able to push the boundaries that were once impossible to pass.