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Tracking Ocean Trash by Satellite

Posted by timothy on from the stupid-giant-trash-balls dept.

DoubleWhopper writes "From the "Intersting Use of Technology" file comes this article on NOAA's tracking of oceanic debris with satellites used for tracking fish. From the article, "...during three days of study, about 2,000 individual pieces of debris were seen", and, "A number were balls of net up to 30 feet across." The researchers verified the information with the aid of a NOAA aircraft and digital imaging."

8 of 22 comments (clear)

  1. Wilson? by toygeek · · Score: 4, Funny

    I wonder if they spotted Wilson? Enquiring castaways want to know....

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  2. Ghost Fishing by TFGeditor · · Score: 4, Interesting

    FTA: "'One piece of driftnet that was still stretched out, and presumably still fishing, was 200-300 meters (650-975 feet) long,' Churnside said."

    The article links to a NOAA article, "Ghost Fishing."

    This is similar to the "ghost traps" crab trapproblem. Crabs enter abandoned crab traps. The crabs die. More crabs enter the traps to feed on the dead ones, then they die. An endless cycle.

    The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department has an annual Crab Trap Cleanup Day. Notices are sent out, and any crab traps still in the water during the cleanup day(s) are considered abandoned. Volunteers annually collect somewhere around 2000 traps from Texas coastal waters.

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  3. Tracking ocean garbage by Scott7477 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    With this tracking technology, now someone could go out and pick this stuff up. Greenpeace could use their Zodiacs for something besides chasing whalers. Seriously, this could lead to a potentially profitable salvage operation.

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  4. Similar to Space Junk... by Bananatree3 · · Score: 2, Funny

    NORAD tracks spacejunk that is in orbit around earth, simiarly to what NOAA is doing with ocean junk.

  5. Now that we know where it is... by breakbeatninja · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Why don't they send some crews to clean it up or notify the respective countries responsible for it to do that. I find it unnerving how much pollution there is in the form of litter, toxins in the air, land and sea and yet most of those responsible are completely apathetic because it is more monetarily efficient.

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    1. Re:Now that we know where it is... by TurboTas · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Pretty easy to asnwer that one:

      It's hard enough persuading (insert government of your choice here) to fix a problem which is in their jurisdiction.

      Now try to persuade that same goverment to go clean up a floating pile of crap that can a) only be seen from space b) is currently bothering no-one and c) is probably in international waters.

      I'm with you, but you're unlikely to get govt support unless the crud drifts up on your nations beaches, catches fire and belches toxic black smoke over (insert favorite dreary seaside town).

  6. grr by bonezed · · Score: 2, Interesting

    lets pressure the gov to clean it up

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  7. Re:The Octopus. by TFGeditor · · Score: 2, Insightful

    There are not octopus in Texas coastal waters where crabbing is done. And the money for the cleanup is minimal, only what it costs to have game wardens et al oversee the activities. The actual cleaners are volunteers.

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    Ignorance is curable, stupid is forever.