The Chilean Antarctic Institute (INACH) has successfully completed a new mission with an autonomous underwater glider (AUV) in the Strait of Magellan. It is regarded as an important preparatory step for the 63rd Chilean Antarctic Expedition (ECA 63). In December, the oceanographic instrument is to be deployed for the first time by a Chilean team in Fildes Bay, a milestone for Chilean Antarctic research.
The test campaign took place from 10 to 12 July 2026 between Punta Arenas and Porvenir. The underwater glider covered around 37 kilometres and continuously recorded temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, fluorescence, turbidity and current velocity using an acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP).
For Dr Lorena Rebolledo, an oceanographer at INACH and head of the project, the mission was a complete success. In addition to testing the vehicle’s functionality, the team was able to demonstrate its ability to work even under difficult conditions. The strong currents, in particular, made it necessary at times to switch from automatic to manual control.
Rebolledo also described the mission as significant from a scientific perspective. Similar operations in the Strait of Magellan took place around ten years ago. The new transect provides valuable data from a region with complex oceanographic and atmospheric conditions.
Dress rehearsal for Antarctica
The main aim of the test run was to prepare the team for the upcoming Antarctic mission. The glider is set to operate between Fildes Bay, Orca Seamount and Nelson Strait, precisely at the time when penguins are foraging for food for their chicks.
The researchers suspect that higher concentrations of nutrients and chlorophyll-a promote primary production and, consequently, krill swarms. The new measurement data should help to better understand these relationships and expand our knowledge of the Southern Ocean.
The mission in Antarctica will be significantly more challenging than in the Strait of Magellan. Low temperatures can affect batteries and sensors, and there are also strong winds, icebergs and heavy shipping traffic to contend with. For this reason, the glider will be monitored round the clock by an interdisciplinary team of scientists, technicians and logisticians during the mission, which is expected to last around ten days. According to INACH, this would be the first deployment of an underwater glider by a Chilean research team in Fildes Bay and in Antarctica.
Wide-ranging collaboration
Specialists from INACH, the Chilean Navy’s Hydrographic and Oceanographic Service (SHOA), the Third Naval Zone, the Punta Arenas Port Authority and the French manufacturer Alseamar took part in the test mission. The project is being jointly implemented by INACH and SHOA as part of a funding programme run by the Chilean research agency ANID, and aims to integrate autonomous technologies more closely into oceanographic research in future.
According to the SHOA, almost 50 glider missions have been carried out in Chile since 2018. However, the conditions in the Strait of Magellan, characterised by lower water density, lower salinity, and strong currents and winds, present particular challenges and provide valuable experience for the upcoming Antarctic mission.
If the mission in December is successful, Chile will reach an important milestone in polar and marine research. At the same time, the autonomous measurement systems open up new opportunities to better understand the dynamics of the Southern Ocean and its impact on Antarctic ecosystems.
Heiner Kubny, Polarjournal