Robotic Mapping of ORAI’s Artificial Reef Sites

The data collected during this expedition will be used to compare and align information from multiple sonar and imaging systems, helping researchers improve how robotic platforms perceive, map, and navigate complex underwater environments. The work also supports the technological and methodological foundation for ORAI’s Mapping the Future of Reefs: Technology for Marine Restoration and Coastal Resilience, which expands its existing ecological monitoring through underwater robotics, high-resolution 3D mapping, photogrammetry, environmental sensing, and hydrodynamic measurements.

For ORAI, the imagery, sonar, and photogrammetry will contribute to a long-term monitoring framework for its artificial reef sites. Three-dimensional models created through photogrammetry will provide measurable records of reef structure, habitat complexity, and biological development that can be compared over time and integrated with ecological monitoring such as fish surveys, benthic imagery, and observations of biological colonization. This will help researchers better understand how reef design and structural characteristics influence habitat use and inform the design, placement, and monitoring of future artificial reefs.

Combined with future environmental and hydrodynamic measurements, these datasets will also help researchers investigate how reef structure and configuration influence water movement, sediment processes, and wave interaction, building an evidence-based understanding of their potential contribution to coastal resilience. Selected 3D models may also support educational and public outreach, allowing audiences to digitally explore ORAI’s reef sites without needing to scuba dive.