London: Scientists have developed a new method to keep count on the whale population of the world, from space. The team from British Antarctic Survey were able to detect and count whales breeding, using high resolution satellite imagery, alongside state-of-the-art software.
At a distance of 770 kms, they conducted the research in part of the Golfo Nuevo, Peninsula Valdes in Argentina. The new method, published in this week’s journal PLoS ONE, could revolutionise the way whale populations are estimated.  Â
Peter Fretwell from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) writes in the journal: “This is a proof of concept study that proves whales can be identified and counted by satellite. Whale populations have always been difficult to assess; traditional means of counting them are localised, expensive and lack accuracy. The ability to count whales automatically, over large areas in a cost effective way will be of great benefit to conservation efforts for this and potentially other whale speciesâ€.