Best Autonomous Drone yet

We have had a few ocean Drone designs discussed here in this Forum.

This impressed me as the best one so far.



Self-sailing drones set to explore the Southern Ocean https://newatlas.com/saildrones-csiro/53117/?utm_source=Gizmag+Subscribers&utm_campaign=818bb02292-UA-2235360-4&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65b67362bd-818bb02292-92822317

 

Also this one, "VAIMOS" developed in 2012 by Ifremer (the french oceanographic research institute, equivalent to CSIRO) :
3,65m long, 300 kg, 3 to 6 Knots, equiped with sensors for measurements of temperature, salinity, turbidity, chlorophylle at both 0,1 m and 1 m waterdepth. Tested autonomy up to now : > 100 km, fit for the local exploration of a zone more than to cross an ocean
Vaimos, le premier drone à voile pour l’exploration des mers https://www.futura-sciences.com/planete/actualites/oceanographie-vaimos-premier-drone-voile-exploration-mers-36122/

And this new one, "Drix", with an electrical propulsion for an autonomy of about 7 days :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhETFxNt6KU

They are developed as a sea surface complements of the Argo international program doing, with profilers, the same type of job in the oceanic water bodiess, up to 2000 m waterdepth, currently more than 3800 profilers at sea ! :
Welcome on ARGO.NET, the International Argo Program Homepage http://www.argo.net/
Argo (oceanography) - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argo_(oceanography)

 

Hmmm - Vaimos is just a glorified model yacht, Drix is not wind propelled, Argo is doing great work but is essentially at the mercy of the currents though it can dive to great depths.

I have this idea of picking up a drone coming from South America - " .... but Officer, it's just an automated drone, I had no idea what was inside it ....."