Scientists turn to sharks for better hurricane predictions
University of Delaware researchers are equipping sharks with electronic sensors to collect real-time ocean data, such as temperature and salinity. This data helps scientists better understand the heat content of the ocean's mixed layer, which is critical for predicting hurricane intensity.
Why it matters
Using marine life as mobile sensor platforms provides a cost-effective and efficient way to gather atmospheric and oceanographic data in areas where traditional monitoring is difficult.
From the killer shark of Jaws to the tornado-tossed predators of the Sharknado movies, films long have portrayed sharks as objects of summer fear. But when a shark cuts through the waters off the U.S. East Coast, it now may be doing more than hunting. It may also be gathering data that helps scientists understand the potential intensity of a hurricane before it makes landfall.
University of Delaware researchers are testing whether sharks can serve as mobile near-real-time ocean-data observers, carrying sensors that measure ocean conditions to inform oceanographic, atmospheric and climate models.
These CTD tags are small electronic devices that measure ocean electrical conductivity — a metric closely related to salinity — as well as temperature and depth, as marine creatures to which they are attached swim and dive.
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