A research paper co-authored by the Michelsen Centre has caused a major revision of how vital fish resources in the North Sea will be managed:

The scientists and fishermen will get a much more accurate view of the actual population of blue whiting from their sonars (acoustic signals reflected by the fish). The error in estimating the fish population with acoustics will be reduced by more than 80% by the new method, and will reduce the error down to virtually zero in some cases.

The blue whiting (“kolmule” in Norwegian) is an important resource for the fisheries and the industry, but is challenging to monitor as it visits several national economic zones in order to complete its life cycle.

This important improvement in developing sustainable fisheries has been achieved by combining fundamental research on marine acoustics with field data from research catches.

The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) will in 2012 use this new method to revise the population data of blue whiting based on research surveys over the period 2004-2011.

The Michelsen Centre contributes to the development of innovative solutions for the next generation of measurement technology for the benefit of the partners and for the society in general.