We are thrilled to announce that the implementation of a key deliverable in the NEMO-Tools project is nearing completion: the development of an innovative, low-cost hydrophone designed to engage citizens in large-scale underwater sound monitoring.
🔹 These 50-Euro hydrophones, developed by UAegean, offer a new, accessible way to collect underwater sound data. Built using readily available components, each unit includes:
- A low-cost hydrophone with a 5-meter audio cable,
- A preconfigured portable recorder housed in an IP66-rated enclosure,
- A user-friendly leaflet with usage instructions.
🔍 The goal? To empower citizens to contribute to marine conservation efforts by collecting critical data on underwater noise levels and marine mammal presence. The data gathered will help monitor species abundance, distribution, and migratory patterns while raising awareness of biodiversity and environmental issues.
🔹 One hundred hydrophones will be manufactured and distributed through citizen science initiatives (e.g., CS Hub of AUTH). In-situ ground-truth validations will take place in three case studies across diverse underwater environments.
💡 This initiative not only enables large-scale acoustic data collection but also enhances education and research opportunities for schools and citizen science projects, particularly those with limited resources. The collected data will be analyzed using advanced tools like Raven Pro and PAMGuard, with methods for automatic detection of marine mammal sounds further refined.
By promoting the use of passive acoustic platforms, NEMO-Tools aims to characterize the underwater soundscape and support sustainable monitoring of marine mammals and noise pollution in the Greek seas. 🌊
📢 Stay tuned for updates as we move forward with this exciting citizen-science initiative!
#NEMOTools #CitizenScience #MarineConservation #UnderwaterAcoustics #InnovationForTheSea
Photo credits: Vassilios Trigonis
Hydrophones at different stages of manufacturing.
NEMO-Tools 