The goal of this research is to improve the detection of north atlantic right whales along the northeast and mid-atlantic U.S. Coast

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) awarded a $3,356,667 Cooperative Agreement under the Cooperative Institute (Inter-Agency Funded Activities) program (CFDA 11.405) to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) to improve the detection of North Atlantic right whales along the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic U.S. coast. The project will utilize a digital acoustic monitoring (DMON) instrument and the low-frequency detection and classification system (LFDCS) to enable real-time detection and reporting of whale calls from autonomous platforms, including Slocum ocean gliders and moored buoys. This will enhance NOAA's research and monitoring efforts by identifying areas of persistent whale occurrence and directing additional visual surveillance to those regions. The Cooperative Agreement has a performance period from Jul 1, 2024 to Jun 30, 2029.

For this project, researchers will use a digital acoustic monitoring (DMON) instrument and the low-frequency detection and classification system (LFDCS), a combined hardware (DMON) capable of detecting and reporting low-frequency that can detect and report a wide variety of calls from autonomous platforms, including slocum ocean gliders and moored buoys. These techniques will enable NOAA to significantly enhance its research and monitoring efforts using real-time detection information to identify areas of persistent whale occurrence and to direct airplane- or ship-based surveys to regions that require additional visual surveillance. Recent advances in automated detection and classification techniques have made determining occurrence in real-time from in-situ acoustic instrumentation feasible