User:Bridgetcollis/Manta trawl

A manta trawl is a net system for sampling the surface of the ocean. It resembles a manta ray, with metal wings and a broad mouth. The net it pulls is made of thin mesh, and the whole trawl is towed behind a scientific research vessel. The manta trawl is useful for collecting samples from the surface of the ocean, such as sampling the plastic pieces making up the great Pacific garbage patch as well as the associated plankton.

Creation
The practice of Trawling helped Marcus Eriksen in creating the manta trawl. Eriksen "studies the global distribution and ecological impacts of plastic marine pollution". Through this research, the pervasiveness of microbeads in the marine environment was determined, and as a result people attempted to spread awareness of the issue across the U.S. in order to prevent marine plastic pollution. Eriksen is also the co-founder of the 5 Gyres Institute, a non-profit organization whose primary research is conducted in order to reduce plastic pollution.

Most manta trawls typically weigh about 18 pounds and feature a net of roughly 3 meters. Manta trawls fall under the category of a Low-tech Aquatic Debris Instrument which is often abbreviated to the acronym LADI. Manta trawls can be towed behind motorized vessels such as scientific research boats or placed in rivers and streams in a stationary position to collect samples in these areas. Using this device has allowed scientists to gain a much better understanding of how natural elements interact with pollution in the waters.

High Speed Mini Trawl
In addition to the creation of the original Manta Trawl, the High Speed Mini Trawl is "smaller and lighter than the Manta; at 15 pounds it is designed to skim the water's surface at higher speeds, up to 8 knots. It has a 14 centimeter wide opening with two 50 centimeter wide wings, and can be towed alongside a boat or stationed in a river to capture floating plastic on the water's surface while filtering debris through a fine-mesh net".

Functionality in Other Fields
One of the fields that has benefitted significantly from this device is Planktology which is the study of various microorganism's that are carried along the surface of bodies of water. Currently the cost and size of the Manta Trawl "limits its use to scientists with the resources to conduct a study". Thus, in order to expand the usage of this tool suggestions of a cheaper model have been postulated in order to give all researchers access to the data it collects. It is important to note that although "trawls such as LADI and the Manta Trawl are one way to gather samples which provide data about the number, types, sizes, toxicity, origins, and more of the plastics at the water’s surface" that the information to which they collect does not "provide representative samples of the water column as a whole".