Submitted Ideas
1
suggestion to solve the problem of ships hitting whales
Posted by Sandra Rios | California, United States
I have a suggestion. There used to be "cow catchers" on the front of trains in the old west. Why can't there be some version of this on the front of ships? Perhaps something that would almost act similar to a large snow shovel like what is attached to the front of trucks used to clear snow from the roads. Perhaps the "whale catcher" could be made of some sort of semi soft plastic like perhaps boogie boards are made of to help soften the impact. It could be designed in such a way to have the whale be diverted off to the side of the ship. Maybe what I am saying at least gives some sort of helpful idea.
Revisiting the “ideas” pages to see what people are saying, I admit, this little idea really brought a smile to my face. But Sandra, remember, cow catchers were not deigned to save cows. They were designed to save trains and keep cows off tracks to avoid derailments. Cows struct by cow cather are are pretty much, killed instantly and thrown a great distance from the train as it barrels by. That said, please realize the TREMENDOUS amount of power taking place at the bow of a ship under way. A whale could be struck with the largest puffy cotton balls on earth and it would still, not survive. Whales have extremely fragile bodies. They can’t even so much as survive being on a beach, their bodies are unable to even support themselves. This does not apply to all species, but the smaller, faster whales have firmer bodies. (and some are not actually whales, they aof the dolphin family)
There are many things that can be done. See the site and learn about what is being “done” and action actually taking place today. Visit here; http://www.whaleresearchinsitute.org See what’s going on in tomorrows technologies, today.