Robots and climate change.

Tiny aquatic robots that resemble mussels, are being used to monitor climate change and its impact on biodiversity. The robots dubbed robomussels actually resemble mussels and was developed by Northeastern University scientist Brian Helmuth. These robots have the same shape, size and color of actual mussels and are fitted with miniature sensors that track temperatures inside the mussel beds. For the past 18 years, every 10 to 15 minutes, Helmuth and a global research team of 48 scientists have used robomussels to track internal body temperature, which is determined by the warmth of the surrounding air or water and the amount of solar radiation the devices absorb. They place the robots inside mussel beds in oceans around the globe and record temperatures. The researchers have built a database of nearly two decades worth of data, enabling scientists to pinpoint areas of unusual warming, intervene to help curb damage to vital marine ecosystems and develop strategies that could prevent extinction of certain species. By tracking the effects of climate change, the findings can reveal emerging hotspots so policymakers and scientists can step in and relieve stressors such as erosion and water acidification before it’s too late. The robots look exactly like mussels, but they have little green blinking lights in them,what the scientist do is basically pluck out a mussel and then glue the device to the rock right inside the mussel bed. These enable them link field observations with the physiological impact of global climate change on these ecologically and economically important animals. Mussels have often been used as a climate change barometer because they rely on external sources of heat such as air temperature and sun exposure for their body heat and thrive, or not, depending on those conditions. Using fieldwork along with mathematical and computational models, Helmuth forecasts the patterns of growth, reproduction and survival of mussels in intertidal zones,these data sets indicate when and where to look for the effects of climate change. The mussels are early indicators that signals trouble warning. The mussels are a major food supply for many species, including lobsters and crabs and also function as filters along near-shore waters, clearing huge amounts of particulates. Losing them can affect everything from the growth of species we care about because we want to eat them, to water clarity, to biodiversity of all the tiny animals that live on the insides of the beds. more