Uncrewed Systems Hypoxia Mapping in the Northern Gulf of Mexico

In this work, we present hypoxia mapping in the Northern Gulf of Mexico, using uncrewed systems, like the Tritons that have the capability of autonomously measuring conductivity, temperature, and depth (CTD) and dissolved oxygen (DO). The Triton uncrewed system can perform both as a surface and an underwater vehicle, thereby providing the opportunity to automate underwater and profile data collection with significantly higher throughput than the traditional casts requiring tedious human intervention. The DO and CTD data measured by the underwater uncrewed vehicle were compared with that of the traditionally used YSI casting profile data at three different locations on the continental shelf, corresponding to the 10, 20, and 30m isobath. Both Triton and YSI data showed a positive correlation of 0.77, 0.88, and 0.78, at the three dive locations, respectively. Triton recorded the hypoxic dead zone (DO < 2 mg/L) at −7m and −20.8m, at the 10, and 20m isobath suggesting the presence of hypoxic areas near the coastal areas of the northern Gulf of Mexico. Additionally, Triton's descent and ascent times were 13 min and 7min, respectively, indicating that from a collection perspective, large areas of seafloor could be mapped for hypoxia in relatively short periods of time.