The Hindu : National : Seabed array system prototype tested

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Seabed array system prototype tested

S. Anandan

Kochi: Just when coastal India broods over measures to counter seaborne threats, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is in the process of developing an integrated costal defence system under its Project Nayan.

“The development of seabed array system, forming its pivot, is making steadfast progress and we have tested the prototype successfully,” a top source told The Hindu.

“The idea is to get alerted when objects traverse the waters. The echo emanating from various objects like fish, various types of ships, submarines and the like have been calibrated and identified for the purpose. Now that the prototype is ready, we need to test it as a system with multiple layers and at various depths,” said the source.

Water medium

The array would transmit the ricocheted signal to the top water medium, maybe a sonobuoy, which in turn would be transmitted to the shore-based command and control centre by way of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or a satellite.

“Once the capability is unambiguously demonstrated, it will be installed initially at Karwar under Project Seabird. However, for the entire system to come into being, we require an exclusive ocean satellite. That, however, has not come so far,” said the source.

Another project

In progress, however, is another ambitious programme that will augment the DRDO’s underwater detection capabilities. Oceanic waves are photographed, in multiple pixels, using a remote sensing satellite.

As in the seabed array system, various types of waves created by movement of different objects are standardised and using signal processing, the cause of a definite kind of wave is recognised.

Encouraging

“In its nascent stage, initial trials pertaining to wave-identification have been highly encouraging. At present, we are developing the method of signal processing but we need to demonstrate it at the system level and in real-time to call it a full-fledged programme,” the source said.

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