MISO Self-Recording Imaging System on a Box Corer

Box corers are used to take large volume samples of the uppermost ~0.5 m of sediment in various shallow and deep-water environments for a variety of biological, bio-geochemical and related studies. Until recently photographing the environment sampled by box coring was difficult. Now, using MISO GoPro cameras, it is possible to film the bottom approach and contact during box coring so that high-resolution imaging of the seafloor sampling site can be correlated to the observed features and animals sampled by the box corer. As shown in the photo gallery, a box corer can be rigged with a down-looking MISO GoPro camera shooting either 1080P, 4k or 5.3k video at 30 fps. The camera recording is started on deck and continues throughout the deployment. The MISO GoPro camera can record 1080P video for ~24hrs, and for ~18-20hrs in 4k or 5.3k video. A 24VDC Ni-MH (nickel-metal hydride) rechargeable battery pack, or a 24VDC deep-sea, oil-compensated Pb-acid battery is used to power a ~9000 lumen LED light, pointed down, to illuminate the area covered by the camera field of view. Depending on the deployment depth, the light can be turned on at the surface and left to run the entire deployment, or it can be programmed with a MISO time-lapse switch system so that it turns on ~1hr prior to the expected bottom approach and ~1hr post bottom contact so that there is ample light for imaging the seafloor during each deployment.