Jag Ski Creates Versatile Platform for Bay Study (SonTek HydroSurveyor)

Buzzing across Mobile Bay at 40 knots on his red-and-white Kawasaki Ultra LX personal watercraft (PWC), University of South Alabama’s Bret Webb isn’t just another waterborne thrill seeker looking for a good wake to jump. His PWC is a state-of-the-art research vessel, outfitted for bathymetric surveying, multi-parameter water quality sampling and sophisticated water velocity studies in the challenging environments.

When the Deepwater Horizon oil platform exploded and sank about 100 miles off the mouth of Mobile Bay in April 2010, Dr. Webb put his unit into high gear, putting his maneuverability, speed and skills to work studying the movement of oil and refined fuels from the spill in the rich fishery. Webb’s work with his Jag Ski – named in honor of University of South Alabama’s Jaguars – offers insight into the dynamics of the Mobile Bay estuary, the performance of structures designed to repair the barrier island at the mouth of the Bay, and the potential of the PWC as a research tool.

Dr. Webb uses his Jag Ski – outfitted with a RiverSurveyor M9 (recently upgraded with the HydroSurveyor software) and a Portable Sea Keeper water quality testing system for bathymetric surveys, multi-parameter water quality testing and studies of the flow of water and pollutants.

Join Dr. Webb, and SonTek Applications Engineer Isaac Jones, for a one-hour online presentation as they talk about various case-studies where the Jag Ski has been instrumental in helping collect data following both natural disasters such as hurricane Katrina, and man-made ones where long-term environmental monitoring is crucial.