Blue Ocean Research Alliance - Eyes in the Ocean

Together we will develop new projects and grow the diversity of marine research and technology development initiatives.

Eyes in the Ocean: Gathering Biodiversity Knowledge as We Work

What is Eyes in the Ocean?

The Eyes in the Ocean (EITO) Project, launched in 2023, involves utilising cutting-edge ROV technology onboard Subsea7 and Seaway7 vessels to support the scientific community, by sharing knowledge and progressing deep ocean ecosystem research. The EITO Project builds upon the SERPENT (the Scientific and Environmental ROV Partnership using Existing Industrial Technology) Project, a previous initiative launched in 2002 by the NOC with supporting partners including Subsea7.

There remains high value in expanding our knowledge of all ocean and deep-sea biodiversity in different geographical locations. With Subsea7 and Seaway7's global reach and over 120 ROVs, the new digital approach to the EITO has re-energised the project and created a new level of automation for categorising offshore marine life observations and sharing feedback on marine life via the EITO Database.

At 841m, this is the first EITO sighting of a siphonophore by the Seven Borealis in Guyana, July 2024. These colonial, pelagic organisms are thought to be the ‘longest animal’ on the planet (up to 45m). An incredible EITO sighting of this unique and elusive organism.

Capture of the Eyes in the Ocean (EITO) Database used by crew and NOC scientists to upload and comment on images of marine life in the areas where we work

Ultimately, the EITO project is pushing boundaries of deep-sea ecosystem research by providing the international scientific community with data to support their exceptional work.

While vessel crew are performing routine operations, the EITO project will be conducted in hidden operational time where marine sightings are captured and uploaded to the EITO database (see image above) to create a visual record of the environment where we work. The database provides easy and direct access to feedback between the crew and NOC scientists. The sharing of this data will help grow our knowledge of species abundance in remote deep-sea locations, through potential publications of scientific papers.

Subsea7 has an extensive visual archive of information on our oceans that has not been studied for science but used for industrial purposes. The data has been collected for Inspection, Repair and Maintenance (IRM) operations or infrastructure and pipeline surveys carried out over many years globally. Part of the EITO project also involves AI to assist in reviewing archived data and videos to find information that may be of interest to the NOC and science and conservation groups.