Adaptive AUV Mission Control System Tested in the Waters of Baffin Bay

Abstract

The primary objectives of this paper are to test an adaptive sampling method for an autonomous underwater vehicle, specifically tailored to track a hydrocarbon plume in the water column. An overview of the simulation of the developed applications within the autonomous system is presented together with the subsequent validation achieved through field trials in an area of natural oil seeps near to Scott Inlet in Baffin Bay. This builds upon our prior published work in methodological development. The method employed involves an integrated backseat drive of the AUV, which processes in situ sensor data in real time, assesses mission status, and determines the next task. The core of the developed system comprises three modular components—Search, Survey, and Sample—each designed for independent and sequential execution. Results from tests in Baffin Bay demonstrate that the backseat drive operating system successfully accomplished mission goals, recovering water samples at depths of 20 m, 50 m, and 200 m before mission completion and vehicle retrieval. The principal conclusion drawn from these trials underscores the system’s resilience in enhanced decision autonomy and validates its applicability to marine pollutant assessment and mitigation.