Bio-Inspired Coastal Defense
Abstract
Building upon technologies discovered in the Persistent Aquatic Living Sensors (PALS) program, the Bio-Inspired Coastal Defense program will develop self-sustaining, hybrid man-made and biological reef structures to fortify and defend DoD bases in low-lying coastal regions. Military assets in these coastal regions are vulnerable to storm surges, wave action, and sea-level rise that cause erosion, degrade infrastructure, and impede operations. Innovative coastal defense will require major technological advances in (1) design, construction, and placement of manufactured reef primers, (2) accelerated recruitment and/or growth of reef species, and (3) sustained, zero-cost natural maintenance and improvement (e.g., increased durability after challenge) of the defensive reef. The primary benefit of such structures is to attenuate wave height during storm events for both established and under construction coastal facilities. This approach could also mitigate ongoing threats posed by state and non-state actors that seek to penetrate, mine, or damage harbors using unmanned underwater vehicles as delivery mechanisms.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Accomplishment
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2022
- Source ID
- e07d0517185616c349eee8c0080119fd