Boeing and AIMS team up to protect Great Barrier Reef

Aerospace manufacturer Boeing and the Australian Institute of Marine Science have signed a five-year agreement to develop advanced monitoring capabilities to better understand the health of the Great Barrier Reef. 

Brisbane-based engineers from Boeing will team up with marine scientists to develop innovative sea-to-space technologies including unmanned aerial vehicles, satellites and autonomous underwater vehicles.

These will safely and quickly collect marine data while at the same time reducing the environmental impact normally caused by marine research using larger vessels.

“Working with Boeing will provide an ideal platform from which we can paint a detailed picture of what is happening on the reef,” AIMS chief John Gunn, a member of the Great Barrier Reef Foundation’s International Science Advisory Committee, said in a press release.

The technology and research created by this partnership will help support the Reef 2050 integrated Monitoring and Reporting program which aims to develop strategies to manage and protect the Great Barrier Reef.