Revolutionizing the Waves: A Breakthrough in Surf Observation Technology for Sailors and Marines

Imagine being entrusted with the vital responsibility of deciding whether conditions are suitable for landing troops on enemy shores, using nothing more than a ruler and tennis ball. It sounds like a scene from a film, yet this is the reality for warfighters who rely on such basic tools to authorize troop movements from vessel to shore — employing eyesight observations to estimate wave height, a ruler to measure water depth and sometimes a tennis ball to determine current wave speed. To improve this antiquated, time-consuming process, the Office of Naval Research (ONR) Global TechSolutions program — which sponsors the development of rapid prototype solutions based on direct requests from Sailors and Marines — worked with scientists and engineers from the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) and the U.S. Army’s Engineering Research and Development Center (ERDC) to create the latest advancement in surf observation (SUROB) technology.