Advancing ocean observation and research through autonomous underwater vehicles at Oregon State University's College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences
Advanced autonomous underwater vehicles developed by Teledyne Webb Research for month-long duration ocean observations, capable of profiling to 1000m depth while collecting critical oceanographic data.
Explore Slocum Gliders →Versatile ocean observation platforms designed by University of Washington's Applied Physics Laboratory for extended missions, providing high-resolution measurements of ocean properties and dynamics.
Explore Seagliders →Access a summary of our glider mission statistics from over 20 years of field operations.
View Statistics →Gliders are autonomous underwater vehicles that revolutionize how we study the ocean. Unlike traditional research vessels or stationary moorings, these torpedo-shaped robots move through the ocean by adjusting their buoyancy, gliding up and down in a sawtooth pattern while traveling forward. This energy-efficient design allows them to cover vast distances while collecting continuous measurements of ocean conditions.
The versatility of underwater gliders lies partly in their flexible power systems. They can be equipped with alkaline batteries for shorter missions, primary (non-rechargeable) lithium batteries for extended deployments, or rechargeable lithium battery systems for missions requiring recovery and redeployment. Depending on the battery configuration and instrument payload, deployment durations range from 2 weeks for heavily instrumented missions to 6 months for streamlined, long-range expeditions. This flexibility allows researchers to tailor each mission to specific scientific objectives and logistical constraints.
Gliders serve as mobile oceanographic laboratories, carrying an array of sophisticated sensors:
Our Slocum glider program addresses critical oceanographic questions along the Pacific Coast:
Hypoxia Monitoring: Off the Washington and Oregon coasts, we use oxygen-equipped gliders to track the seasonal development and spatial extent of hypoxic events—periods when oxygen levels drop dangerously low near the seafloor. These low-oxygen zones can devastate bottom-dwelling species like Dungeness crab and force fish to abandon their normal habitats. By documenting when, where, and how severe these events become, we provide early warnings to fisheries managers and help predict future trends as climate change alters ocean chemistry.
Climate and Temperature Variability: Along the Northern California coast, our gliders maintain long-term temperature records that reveal how the ocean is changing. These measurements document marine heatwaves, track the arrival of El Niño and La Niña conditions, and monitor upwelling—the process that brings cold, nutrient-rich water to the surface and sustains productive coastal ecosystems. Understanding this temperature variability helps explain shifting fish distributions, harmful algal blooms, and the health of kelp forests.
Ocean Circulation and Mixing: Using turbulence microstructure sensors, we investigate the small-scale physical processes that control how the ocean mixes vertically. These measurements reveal how wind, tides, and internal waves stir the ocean, bringing nutrients from depth to sunlit surface waters where phytoplankton can use them. This mixing is fundamental to ocean productivity but occurs at scales too small and variable for traditional sampling methods to capture effectively.
Traditional oceanographic research relies on ships, which are expensive to operate and can only sample one location at a time. Satellite observations can see the ocean surface but cannot peer beneath. Moored instruments stay in one place. Gliders fill a critical gap: they provide continuous, mobile measurements over weeks to months, adapting their sampling patterns in real-time and covering distances of hundreds to thousands of kilometers. They can operate in rough weather when ships cannot, maintain presence during critical events, and collect data at a fraction of the cost of ship-based expeditions.
As ocean conditions change rapidly due to climate warming, ocean acidification, and shifting circulation patterns, gliders provide the persistent observations needed to understand these changes and predict their impacts on marine ecosystems, fisheries, and coastal communities.
Explore our glider tracks in 3D space. Rotate, zoom, and switch between temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, and pressure to see how oceanographic conditions vary with depth and location.
💡 Tip: Click and drag to rotate • Scroll to zoom • Hover over glider track for data • Use dropdown to change parameters
