The article examines the growing challenge of detecting and clearing sea mines, particularly amid concerns that Iran could deploy mines in the Strait of Hormuz. It highlights how modern mines can be difficult to identify, creating a significant challenge for naval forces and commercial shipping.

Emerging technologies could help to detect Iran’s mines. The Canadian firm, Kraken Robotics, supplies cutting-edge mine detection equipment to several NATO navies, and works with the US and UK.

Kraken’s KATFISH maps the seabed and sends high-resolution data to a surface vessel through a fibre-optic cable. 

Kraken CTO David Shea explains that modern mines are increasingly sophisticated.

Generally, they are lying on the seabed. They are disguised. They look like rocks. And they have a very low signature to make them difficult to detect.

He also highlights the broader shift towards uncrewed systems, saying there has been “a big push into uncrewed” technology that can enter dangerous areas without putting human lives at risk. Shea notes that modern conflicts can involve significant GPS denial and jamming, explaining that some Kraken systems use navigation systems independent of GPS.

The article demonstrates the growing importance of synthetic aperture sonar, seabed mapping, underwater threat detection, and uncrewed subsea survey technology for modern defence and mine countermeasure (MCM) operations.

Article: The cutting-edge robots that can hunt some of Iran’s most notorious weapons