Engineers have created an autonomous miniature boat to automatically explore the bottom. In this respect informs University of Texas at El Paso.
From a technical point of view, the authors describe the device as a small 1×1 meter jet ski. It is driven by an electric motor, steering is not provided, instead, four thrusters are used. This allows the platform to move at speeds of up to 1.6 meters per second and easily rotate 360 degrees. The solar panel and lithium battery allow the boat to cruise for up to four hours.
For research missions, a multi-beam echo sounder is built into the boat. It emits sound waves and records the nature of the reflection as well as the time it takes for the echo to return to the machine. Based on this, the computer calculates the three-dimensional shape of the base and determines the type of material. As an experiment, a team of scientists used a boat to create 2D and 3D maps of parts of Ascarate Lake in Texas and Grindstone Lake in New Mexico.
Drawings and building instructions for the boat are made public so that research groups around the world can build the boat themselves and use it to study local waters.
Earlier to create An ancient Roman amphora with poems by the ancient poet Virgil was found in Cordoba.