The “Golden Eye”, a new type of sensor for deep-sea research “made in Bremen”, has successfully completed an initial series tests in the North Sea. Equipped with cameras and an 11.5-ft electromagnetic sensor, the ring-shaped platform made of luminous yellow fiberglass can be submerged to a depth of more than 16,000 feet. Dr. Hendrik Müller and engineer Christian Hilgenfeldt, members of the research team surrounding Professor Tilo von Dobeneck, developed the device for the Bundesanstalt für Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe (BGR) [Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources]. They have now been able to put it through its paces during initial sea trials. Golden Eye is a profiler system for mapping the ocean floor. When it becomes fully operational next year, the BGR intends to use it to investigate massive marine sulfide deposits in the Indian Ocean.

Tests off the coasts of Helgoland, Scotland and in the Skagerrak Straits

The Bremen researchers were among those on board the new multidisciplinary research vessel “SONNE” during its fourth series of sea trials. The first Golden Eye tests took place in the so-called Helgoland “mud hole”. “It was certainly an exciting moment for all of us in the control room when we captured the first data and video images from the bottom of the North Sea”, recalls geophysicist Dr. Hendrik Müller. Golden Eye generates electrical eddy currents in the seabed, which the researchers use to measure the electrically conductive and magnetizable structures under the ocean floor. They are then able to draw conclusions concerning the makeup and material properties of the layer down to thirty feet or so under the ocean floor. Further trials were undertaken at a depth of around 1,500 feet in the Skagerrak Straights and the Devil’s Hole off the Scottish coast. In 2015 “Golden Eye” will be used by the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources for the first time in the Indian Ocean, where it will be deployed at depths around six and a half thousand feet for large-scale mapping operations. These measurements will be taken within the context of a licensing agreement Germany has concluded with the government there, permitting it to carry out research on underwater deposits of copper and nickel, as well as trace metals like cobalt, germanium, indium, selenium and tellurium – absolutely vital elements for the electronics industry. The plan is ultimately to mine these metals under environmentally-friendly conditions.

Assessing ecological sensitivity

The research team is acutely aware of the need for a sustainable and environmentally tenable concept for mining the metals once their exploration research is completed. With this in mind, Professor Tilo von Dobeneck, lead investigator in the field of Marine Geophysics at the University of Bremen, points out: “The new system is not only designed to explore deposits of materials on the ocean floor. It can also be used universally for basic research to characterize the porosity and mineral composition of the seabed. By means of its integrated camera systems, the platform can in future also be brought to hover just three feet over the seabed and compile detailed photographic records of the macroscopic inhabitants there, thus making it possible to assess the ecological sensitivity of the area in question. The concept therefore lends itself not only to researching marine deposits but also to monitoring the underwater environment.”

Research on innovative sensory systems

Scientists working in the area of Marine Geophysics at the University of Bremen have been developing innovative sensory systems for measuring the electrical and magnetic properties of the seabed for the past eight years. The Bremen ocean researchers have already conducted a number of field surveys in coastal and shelf seas around the world using a smaller multisensory profiler called “MARUM Neridis”. Following the environmentally devastating sinking of the RENA container vessel in 2012, they carried out a detailed study of the sediment composition, marine populations, and contamination of the seabed off the New Zealand coast.

The SONNE’s open ship tour

From 13th to 28th November 2014, the 380-foot long and 70-foot wide new research vessel, the “SONNE”, will be presenting itself to the public during an open ship tour of Wilhelmshaven, Bremerhaven, Bremen, Hamburg, Warnemünde and Kiel. The “SONNE” will be in Bremen in the Getreidehafen on Tuesday 18th November 2014, where members of the public can go on board between 4pm and 8pm, and on Wednesday 19th November between 10am and 3pm. “Golden Eye” will also be on view.

If you would like to learn more about this topic, please contact:
University of Bremen
Area of Geosciences
Department of Marine Geophysics
Dr. Hendrik Müller
Phone: +49 421 218-65312
e-mail: hendrik.muellerprotect me ?!uni-bremenprotect me ?!.de