Light Hearted 323 – Moses Calouro, Portia Calouro: How lighthouses are helping to save right whales

AIS (Automatic Identification System) has been used for years to monitor the movements of ships and aircraft in real-time, helping to ensure safe and efficient operations. The company MotionInfo provides second-by-second data accuracy using an extensive network of stations. A North Atlantic right whale and calf. (NOAA Photo Library) Bob Trapani, Jr., American Lighthouse Foundation Executive Director, working on installing MotionInfo’s AIS StationKeeper inside the lantern of Little River Light in Maine. (Photo by Ann-Marie Trapani) The North Atlantic right whale, with fewer than 350 individuals remaining, is critically endangered, and 139 right whales have been injured or killed by vessel strikes since 2017. MotionInfo has been implementing high-tech solutions aimed at preventing vessel-whale collisions, and a number of MotionInfo’s StationKeeper units have been installed in lighthouses. Joining in this discussion with Moses Calouro and Portia Calouro of MotionInfo are U.S. Lighthouse Society Executive Director Jeff Gales and American Lighthouse Foundation Executive Director Bob Trapani Jr., who also co-hosts. Click here for more information.