Research Focus Area
From vibrant shallow coral reefs to mysterious deep-sea trenches, each habitat plays a unique role in sustaining marine biodiversity, cycling nutrients, and regulating ecosystems. Detailed knowledge of these habitats helps us identify critical areas for conservation, assess human impacts, and support sustainable use of ocean resources.
By revealing how habitats function and connect, we unlock insights needed to safeguard ocean resilience in the face of climate change, pollution, and increasing human activity.
Despite their importance, many ocean habitats remain poorly understood, especially in deeper or remote areas. Mapping these environments is complicated by technical constraints including limited visibility, complex terrain, and vast scales. Habitat boundaries can also be dynamic, shifting with currents, seasons, or biological activity, making accurate characterization difficult. Without detailed and reliable data, conservation efforts and policy decisions risk being ineffective or misdirected, leaving vulnerable ecosystems exposed to degradation or loss.
At OceanX, we combine cutting-edge technologies including high-resolution sonar, LiDAR, photogrammetry, and visual surveys to generate precise, three-dimensional maps of marine habitats across all depths. This integrated approach reveals fine-scale details of habitat structure, biodiversity hotspots, and environmental dynamics that were previously inaccessible. By capturing these complex underwater landscapes with unprecedented clarity, we fill critical knowledge gaps and provide the scientific foundation necessary for informed conservation, management, and sustainable ocean stewardship.
Generate detailed benthic habitat maps at local to regional scales.
Integrate physical and biological data to classify habitat types.
Identify ecologically significant features such as spawning grounds, coral gardens, and methane seeps.
Multibeam Bathymetry: Collecting high-resolution seafloor maps using hull-mounted Kongsberg EM 304 and 712 sonars, complemented by MBES on the ROV and tenders.
Acoustic Backscatter Analysis: Interpreting substrate type and rugosity from sonar return strength.
LiDAR and Hyperspectral Imaging: Conducting shallow-water habitat assessments and detecting changes in vegetation and reef cover.
Photographic Transects: Using visual surveys and photogrammetry to create ground-truth datasets.
Physical sampling of key taxa: Collecting specimens to validate acoustic and visual data and assess biological communities.
eDNA Sampling: Analyzing environmental DNA to map biodiversity presence and distribution.
Underwater Visual Census: Capturing high-definition imagery using cameras on submersibles and ROVs to identify and quantify marine life.
SimOps (Simultaneous Operations): Coordinated deployment of submersibles, ROVs, and autonomous vehicles to capture multiple data layers across spatial and depth gradients.