If you’re a sailor on passage in the Pacific southeast of Hawaii, some students from the University of Washington are hoping you might be able to retrieve their Seaglider, an AUV (autonomous underwater vehicle) that has been gathering data for them. 

UW students launch a Seaglider in Puget Sound. Photo courtesy of UW Student Seaglider Center.

The students, working in the Student Seaglider Center, a student-run lab within UW’s School of Oceanography, deployed the Seaglider last November in the equatorial Pacific to collect oceanographic data including temperature, salinity, oxygen, and chlorophyll. 

A Seaglider at the surface in Seattle. This is what the antenna and missing Seaglider will look like to any boats who find it in the Pacific. Photo courtesy of UW Student Seaglider Center.

“We aimed to pilot the Seaglider to the shore at Hawaii, but currents have been stronger than we anticipated, and the glider will not be able to make it to Hawaii before its batteries run out,” says Layla Airola, the center’s chief business officer. 

As of late last week (May 29), with its batteries running low, the glider had surfaced and was no longer able to continue its route. It was still pinging a position, which most recently was 10° 21.321′ North, 144° 38. 042 West, and it is expected to remain in that general area while moving around with currents. 

The wayward Seaglider’s approximate position as of May 29, 2025.

Airola says although they don’t know precisely when their Seaglider’s batteries will die and the GPS pings will stop, they do know that the AUV must be retrieved no later than the end of June.

UW students pose with one of the Seagliders. The autonomous underwater vehicles are expensive and hard to come by; the Student Seaglider Center’s small fleet is largely made up of “inherited” AUVs that the students keep in working order. Photo courtesy of UW Student Seaglider Center.

The students hope that if a sailor can find the glider, they can lift it out of the water, contact them, and make arrangements to get it safely home. The glider weights about 120 pounds, and its orange antenna will be visible. 

To get updated position reports, or if you find the Seaglider, please contact [email protected].

A Seaglider ready for deployment. Photo courtesy of UW Student Seaglider Center.

The Seaglider is one of a small fleet developed by the UW program, mostly by repairing “inherited” units and deploying them in Puget Sound. Designed to operate autonomously, the AUVs are programmed to travel and gather data without relying on physical human intervention. “Assisted by experienced mentors, students conduct technical testing, dive planning, and piloting. Through these activities, students gain invaluable experience conducting oceanographic research, develop essential skills and experience for future careers and make meaningful contributions to the field of oceanography,” the center’s website notes. 

A Seaglider goes for test run in a pool. Photo courtesy of UW Student Seaglider Center.

June 2025