"Fog clings to the Golden Gate, swallowing the booming horns of cargo ships as they attempt to warn other vessels of their presence. Onboard a small research vessel nearby, underwater microphones called hydrophones are lowered beneath the surface along with other sensors, ready to capture the hidden choir of San Francisco Bay - whales. Ray Duran, founder of BayQuest, the nonprofit behind this mission, peers through his binoculars, scanning for ripples or shadows that might reveal one."
"The project, which began its first missions in June, uses hydrophones to monitor how ship noise affects whales in one of the West Coast's busiest waterways. "The end aim is to show that they are impacted by the sound," said Firuze Gocke, co-creator of the project and board member of the American Cetacean Society. "The noise is really influencing every part of their life and making it difficult.""
Fog frequently envelops the Golden Gate, masking ship horns while research vessels lower hydrophones and additional sensors to record whale vocalizations in San Francisco Bay. The SeaSounds Project deploys hydrophones from the Aquarium of the Bay's vessel Mike Reigle to monitor how ship noise affects whales in one of the West Coast's busiest waterways. Volunteers and scientists scan for visual signs while acoustic data reveal migrations, feeding habits, and social behavior. Whale deaths in the Bay Area have risen dramatically, with 2025 already exceeding the past quarter century. Dedicated acoustic monitoring remains limited around the Golden Gate, prompting local groups to fill the gap.
Read at The Mercury News
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