The SmartBay underwater observatory, a marine research and sensor development hub, was successfully re-deployed in Galway Bay last Thursday, June 19th, following a period of maintenance work.

The SmartBay observatory is an advanced sub-sea sensor hosting platform connected to shore via a fiber optic data and power cable. This robust "node" provides crucial electrical power and high-speed communication capabilities to a variety of scientific instruments, serving both R&D projects and sensor developers. Equipped with a suite of permanently deployed instruments, the observatory offers continuous access to live marine data.

Among the instruments re-deployed with the observatory are the Cytosub and a UVP6. Both of these instruments had been previously deployed from July 2024 to March 2025, contributing valuable data to ongoing research. A new camera is also planned for deployment on the observatory in the coming months, further enhancing its monitoring capabilities.

The redeployment operation was a collaborative effort, involving the P&O crew, who managed the complex handling, alongside a dedicated team of divers and scientists from the Marine Institute. Their combined expertise ensured the safe and successful return of this critical piece of marine infrastructure to its operational position in Galway Bay.