Research Portal

Geoscience » Georges Bank Research & Data

Science and Socio-economic Review of the Georges Bank Prohibition Area 2020-2021

June – December 2021

Georges Bank is a large submarine platform located at the edge of the Atlantic continental shelf between Cape Cod and Nova Scotia. The Georges Bank Prohibition Area covers a significant portion of Georges Bank and is located on the Canadian side of the Canada-United States maritime boundary.

The Vectron2 Project: Turbulence Measurements for the In-stream Tidal Energy Industry

March 2019 – November 2021

The Vectron is a new sensor used for measuring turbulence velocity within a tidal turbine’s swept area.  The Vectron has been successfully prototyped, where next steps are to take the technology to the ‘industry-ready’ stage of development and the focus of this project.

Turbulent Scale and Wake Modeling on a Horizontal Axis Turbine

January – April 2015

This project aimed to accurately simulate turbulent flow over a scaled horizontal axis tidal turbine to resolve turbulence in the near and far field regions.

Turbulence and Bottom Stress in Minas Passage and Grand Passage

September 2011 – February 2015

This project aimed to investigate turbulence and bottom stress at two sites being targeted for in-stream tidal power development in Nova Scotia: Minas Passage in the Upper Bay of Fundy and Grand Passage, located between Brier and Long Island in the lower Bay of Fundy.

Geoscience » Seismic & Marine Sound

Establishment of Baseline Biological Data on Snow Crab (Chionoecetes opilio) Offshore Cape Breton for Future Assessment of Potential Impacts of Seismic Noise on Snow Crab

April 2012 – February 2015

The study investigates the impact of sound energy generated by acoustic/seismic arrays on snow crabs.

Assessment of Hydrodynamic Impacts throughout the Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine due to Tidal Energy Extraction by Tidal Lagoons

January 2010 – December 2011

The researchers extended existing hydrodynamic models of tidal flows in the Bay of Fundy to simulate the presence and operation of a tidal lagoon project located in the Minas Basin.

Geoscience » Seismic & Marine Sound

Physics of the Interaction between a Crab and a Seismic Test Pulse – Development of a Mathematical Model and Testing of Model via Simulation

June 2009 – September 2011

Experimental attempts to establish whether seismic testing has any impact on crabs and the crab fishery have been hampered by a lack of theoretical work on the subject.

Assessment of the Potential of Tidal Power from Minas Passage and Minas Basin

October 2009 – September 2011

This project estimated the power potential of the tides and tidal currents in the Minas Basin and Minas Channel regions of the Bay of Fundy.

Geoscience » Seismic & Marine Sound

Feasibility of a Marine Vibroseis System to Minimize Potential Impacts of Seismic Surveying on Commercial Marine Invertebrates

May 2010 – May 2011

Marine vibroseis (a sound generating system that uses a large oscillating mass to emit a range of frequencies) offers an alternative to air-gun seismic sources and may have fewer environmental effects on marine biota.

Near Field Effects of Tidal Power Extraction on Extreme Events and Coastline Integrity in the Bay of Fundy

January 2010 – March 2011

Researchers quantified the near-field effects of power extraction on the resulting effects of extreme storm events and coastline integrity by implementing a spectral wave model to numerically simulate wave transformation for tidal current conditions with and without turbines.