Overview
- This week CSULB’s Shark Lab unveiled and began testing a roughly 10-foot solar-powered prototype that can patrol offshore with semi-autonomy and carry an aerial drone.
- The craft combines acoustic receivers that listen for surgically implanted shark tags, automated collection of water for environmental DNA tests, and drone video that streams data back to shore.
- Researchers say the system is meant to give lifeguards near-real-time information to guide beach safety decisions and to help monitor coastal venues planned for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
- The project is backed by the Seaver Institute with technical partners including NYU’s Center for Robotics and MBARI, but state funding that paid for the build expires this fall and could force cutbacks.
- The system depends on an active shark-tagging program—CSULB has tagged hundreds of juvenile white sharks—and scientists say warming waters this season are likely to shift more sharks north toward California, increasing demand for monitoring.