2004 Scallop Research Setaside Project 007
Cooperative Fisheries Research

NOAA award: project 04-SCA-007
to Arnies's Fisheries, New Bedford

Most everyone who has gone to sea has wondered what was below. This project is dedicated to finding out and making that information available via the internet.

Funded by the scallop fishing industry, and administered by NOAA Fisheries, this project brings together the best of two worlds. WHOI scientists offer a long history of undersea imaging and current experience with the most advanced technologies. Partners from the commercial scallop fishery contribute first hand knowledge about what lives where, capable vessels, and what it takes to get things done at sea. This combination of skills allows us to make progress in collecting, processing and disseminating information to better characterize our offshore areas and marine resources.

The project team:

from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Scott Gallager, Jonathan Howland
Andy Girard, Lane Abrams, Chris Griner, and Emily Miller.
Amber York became a primary team member during 2006.
Steve Lerner joined the effort in 2007.

from the commercial fishing industry:

F/V Kathy Marie, owner Arnie DeMello
Captain Paul Rosonina and the gang

Norman Vine, image processing
Richard Taylor

Funding was generated by the hard work of the skippers and crews of:
F/Vs Kathy Marie, Kayla Rose, Westport, Christian and Alexa, Atlantic, Guidance, Silver Sea, Kathy and Jackie, Santa Barbara, Jillian, Cool Change, Baystar II, and Addy J.


 

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
website with all images, project MapServer, and other data products
http://habcam.whoi.edu
Thanks to Amber York

Poster for AAAS and ASLO meetings, Feb 2006

What follows below is a quick tour of our progress
in developing the camera system and our first trips at sea.

Objective 1:
Develop a towed instrument to photograph scallop distribution and substrate from a commercial fishing vessel.

design output of ~14,000 images per hour (4 per second) at 4 knots

  Fibreoptic networked digital camera - open bottle, rightside


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  Fibreoptic networked digital camera - open bottle, leftside


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  Primary project vessel F/V Kathy Marie, New Bedford


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  Testing the light spacing and alignment with wooden frame


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  Camerasled frame from Northeast Consortium project 2002


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  Modified camerasled frame with additional lighting


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  Camerasled frame on WHOI dock for final testing


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  NOMAD Fibreoptic winch, on deck F/V Kathy Marie


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  Test 873, WHOI dock well, "self labelling shells"


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Putting the camera aboard, F/V Kathy Marie owner Arnold DeMello


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Objective 2:
Conduct preliminary surveys in several areas.
Collect initial data for development of processsing methods.

  First sea trials, October 2005
  Nantucket Sound, towing at 3 knots,


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  Load testing winch and wire


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  Wheelhouse - looking at the images as they come up the fiber


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  Sample, first sea trials, shallow water,
         unprocessed, ~1.2 meters wide by 1 meter


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  Steaming in with ~31,000 bottom images, ~50Gb, in ~4hrs


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  Second trip: November 2005
  Nantucket Lightship Closed Area

  Overview NLSCLA transect area


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  Sample, deeper, ~1.2 meters wide by 1 meter
  realistically cold and dark NHV


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   Sample mosaic, NLSCLA, ~1 meter wide by ~10 meters
   multiple image processing steps


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  Third trip: January 2006
  Western Great South Channel

   Sample mosaic, single image processing step,
  ~1.5 meter strip by ~5 meters


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   Three skates, ~1.5 meter strip by ~5 meters

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   Gravel and sand, 21 images, ~15 meter strip


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   Boulder, 10 images, ~8 meter strip


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   Exploring new color processing methods - Norman Vine


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   Exploring new color processing methods 2 - Norman Vine


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Exploring automated color balancing, blending and mosaicing
   Norman Vine

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  Exploring another method viewing images

   Found along the way

  Wrong time of the year for cod here, one in >200,000 images

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  Fourth trip: 14 February 2006
  Elephant Trunk growout area, off New Jersey



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  R/V Albatross tows in 2004 and 2005


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  R/V Albatross tows and fishing effort, 2003 and Spring 2004


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  R/V Albatross tows in Elephant Trunk


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  Elephant Trunk, 15 February 2006


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  Sample image from Elephant Trunk 15 February 2006
    taken at 5.5 frames per second at 4.8 knots


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  Before and after - lightfield removal

  Sample mosaic from Elephant Trunk
What color is it down there?
the skate and the clean scallops look about right

  Feast of the snails - Elephant Trunk 15-16 February 2006
    three have had enough already


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  Sample mosaic from NLSCLA Habitat Closure Area
near the Andrea Doria
Are we providing protection to the right area(s)?

  Collecting data on a fishing trip, Southeast Part of Georges Bank
Closed Area 2, August 2006


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  Starfish, Southeast Part 2006, Closed Area 2

  Empty scallops and ctenaphores, Southeast Part 2006, Closed Area 2

  Northern Edge, HAPC, Closed Area 2
rare images of cod


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  F/V Kathy Marie gang out front on WHOI dock
    John, Jarry, Donald, Capt Paul, Capt Norman


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Contact

first created 6:06 AM 11/02/2005

last modified 9:40 PM 8/3/2006