The DAEDALUS catamaran, in its spacious and comfortable quarters, incorporates a package of very special equipment calling for unusual activities: it is a craft developed for exploring and discovering what is hidden in the depths of the seas. In the effort to better highlight our advantages at performing high depth surveys, DAEDALUS has been fitted with our hull mounted long range sonar capable of offering an impressive mapping speed 5 to 10 times greater than conventional towed side scan sonars. 

Advanced non conventional design concepts and accurate construction assure speed, stability, safety and comfort, but in addition DAEDALUS is fitted with a set of instrumentation of original concept: a long range SIDE SCAN SONAR, a system for DYNAMIC POSITIONING and two small remote operated underwater robots PLUTO.

- A long range SIDE SCAN SONAR. While navigating at speeds of 5 to 6 knots it records a sea bed map on a 1000 m wide corridor, in depths exceeding 1000 m and it can detect the presence of objects such as wrecks even if rather small in size.

- A system for DYNAMIC POSITIONING is able of keeping stationary position in the middle of the seas without anchoring, automatically computer controlled so that no human interaction needs to be involved.

- Two small remote operated underwater robots PLUTO: PLUTO PALLA very compact vehicle, yet capable of reaching depths in excess of 2000 m and the newest MULTIPLUTO extending the performance to 4000 m depth.

MULTIPLUTO is a new remote operated vehicle (ROV), it is a battery powered underwater robot capable of 2000/4000 metres depth. The system is so compact, lightweight and portable to be suitable for ocean floor inspections deploying even from small boats. It is particularly suitable for scientific research in the fields of biology, geology, oceanology, sampling, archaeology, wreck inspection, and object recovery.

PLUTO PALLA is a small size ROV designed for deep scientific observations down to 2000 meters depths. It is an “eyeball” shaped compact inspection ROV characterized by its compactness, lightweight and portability, making it deployable from any small craft of opportunity and suitable for scientific observation, ocean floor inspections and much more. The unique compact characteristics allow the entire system to be transported in the trunk of any mid-size car, embarked aboard any kind of a vessel and immediately deployable without the need of fixed on board installation. PLUTO PALLA grants unprecedented underwater scientific research possibilities and exceptional visual inspection capabilities.

For more information visit: http://www.azionemare.org