Estimating the vertical velocity of buoyant deep-sea hydrothermal plumes through dynamic analysis of an autonomous vehicle

This paper demonstrates a method for using an autonomous underwater vehicle to measure the velocity of a deep-sea hydrothermal plume. Based on a system identification experiment conducted in the actual operating environment, we extracted a dynamic model of the vehicle's vertical response, then used that model to infer the vertical water velocity of rising plumes in the main observation area. The results are compared to a more direct measurement using an acoustic current meter.