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California turns to AI as whale deaths spike
The system uses thermal cameras and trained observers to send real-time alerts that help vessels avoid collisions with whales.
- On Tuesday, May 19, a coalition led by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution unveiled WhaleSpotter in San Francisco Bay, an AI-powered network using thermal cameras on Angel Island and ferries to detect whales and alert vessel captains.
- Climate change is disrupting Arctic food sources, causing malnourished gray whales to linger in the busy estuary, where at least 40% face deadly ship strikes. Researchers first observed this trend in 2018.
- WHOI physicist Daniel Zitterbart developed the system over 15 years, training AI on hundreds of thousands of thermal images to detect heat signatures up to 7 kilometers away. Researchers verify detections before alerting vessels to minimize false positives.
- Whale biologist Josephine Slaathaug of Sonoma State University called the technology a "huge leap in the right direction to protecting whales," expressing cautious optimism about industry collaboration on long-term solutions.
- Beyond ship strikes, warming waters increasingly threaten humpbacks through entanglement in crab fishing gear. Caitlynn Birch, Oceana's Pacific campaign manager, noted that adaptive, science-driven management remains essential to reducing wildlife risk along the West Coast.
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32 Articles
Pioneer Press+2 Reposted by 2 other sources
San Francisco turns to AI to avoid collisions between ships and whales searching for food
The system, called WhaleSpotter, scans the bay around the clock for whale blows and heat signatures up to 2 nautical miles away.
·Saint Paul, United States
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Associated Press News+24 Reposted by 24 other sources
A new whale detection network launches in San Francisco Bay, alerting ships in real time
Climate change is pushing starving gray whales into the San Francisco Bay in unusual numbers, where ship strikes killed at least 40% of the 21 whales found dead last year.
·United States
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Coverage Details
Total News Sources32
Leaning Left11Leaning Right6Center12Last UpdatedBias Distribution41% Center
Bias Distribution
- 41% of the sources are Center
41% Center
L 38%
C 41%
R 21%
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