Engineers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have built a 370-lb solar-powered underwater autonomous vehicle (SUAV) that can travel at 2 mph and reach depths of 1,500 ft beneath the surface of the water.
It's part of a National Science Foundation project called RiverNet that could lead to long-term monitoring of chemical and biological trends in water quality of rivers, lakes, and waterways. The U.S. Navy is also interested in using SUAV technology for coastal surveillance.