Evaluation of Vessel Detection System Use for Monitoring of Fisheries Activities

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We present results from the use of a vessel detection system (VDS) which locates vessel positions in remote sensing imagery acquired by orbiting Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite sensors. The system, which is developed and maintained in house, has been tested in several vessel traffic situations in European waters and international waters during the last 3 years. Our analysis focuses on 2006 results generated over the Redfish (S. mentella) fishing grounds over the Reykjanes Ridge, south-west of Iceland. The use of VDS in this case study is a practical example of the role it could play in support to surveillance operations and wide area vessel traffic pattern recognition. In particular we look at detection rates, correlation to known vessel Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) positions and explanations for the abundance of detected targets that are unmatched by VMS. The hypothesis that the latter relate to Illegal, Unreported and Illegal (IUU) vessels in the area is confirmed by sightings by the Icelandic Coastguard and Greenpeace. We conclude with a projection of future VDS developments.