A Portable Shallow-Water Optic Fiber Towed Camera System for Coastal Benthic Assessment

Observing benthic regions in the world's oceans below depths accessible by human divers generally requires optical camera systems designed specifically for the expected marine environment. This paper describes the development and application of a shallow-depth underwater camera package plus ancillary winch system capable of delivering high quality scientific data. The key design criteria for the system requires that it be deployable from a small vessel with a minimal number of technical staff. The design aims for maximum portability to allow the system to be transported and used on different chartered vessels in diverse regions, and rapidly transported between areas of scientific interest in different regions of Australia's geographically diverse marine estate. As well as the system design, the paper discusses a number of recent field campaigns using this platform in Australian coastal waters, including issues which arose during early deployments, and how they were addressed. Finally, the paper discusses how this platform fits into the CSIRO's range of camera platforms and presents some ideas on the next areas for development of this platform.