Kolkata Woman Invented World's First Underwater Drone To Map Ocean Floors

Featured as one of Forbes’ top 30 most powerful young talents across the world, 28-year-old Sampriti Bhattacharya turned her PhD research thesis at Massachusetts Institute of Technology into a patented invention coveted by oil sharks and the defense sector.

‘Hydroswarm’ functions as an underwater drone to map out extensive parts of oceans and seas, and record the landscape underwater at depths that no other device could work at, other than extremely expensive equipment.

From replacing dolphins that are used to sniff out mines and equipment lost underwater, to scanning vast sections of the ocean floors and sea beds, detecting pollution, studying underwater ecosystems, the young innovator’s device can be utilised for a variety of purposes.

The devices, each of which is about the size of a football, can either work by themselves or in a group of other ‘hydrodrones’, and they can come with installed cameras, ultrasound sensors and so on. “It is a platform where you can plug and play any kinds of sensors that you want. It is very much like an aerial drone, “ she told the Guardian.

Working in places where even GPS doesn’t function, Hydroswarms can scan up to 100 sq km in just four hours. Adding to all the positive aspects of this underwater drone is the fact that it’s relatively cheaper to manufacture.

Originally from Kolkata, Bhattacharya’s ambition is to discover as much of the underwater world as possible. As she expands, “We know less about the ocean than we do about the moon’s surface. What I want to do is make a whole map of the ocean.”

While curbing water pollution, understanding marine life better, locating lost items from huge airplanes to smaller equipment and so on are just a few of the many possible uses of her invention, the young engineer’s ultimate ambition is to map the deepest part of the world’s ocean cover—the Mariana Trench in the western Pacific ocean.

As one of the world’s most powerful young change-makers, Bhattacharya’s feat is nothing short of highly commendable. Watch the video of how the hydroswarm will function, below.