Create a buoy to 'scare' jellyfish

ValenciaThe pleasure longed for by many people to swim on a beach without the fear of being stung by a jellyfish is not yet a reality, but it is getting closer and closer. The latest step in this direction has been taken by the research group on Management and Restoration of Terrestrial and Marine Ecosystems (GRE) at the University of Alicante, which has developed a device that prevents these invertebrates from reaching the coast by generating electromagnetic fields.

The system, "unique in the world" according to its promoters, manages to reduce the number of pulsations through which jellyfish contract their umbrella to create the water flow that allows them to move. Furthermore, it does so in a harmless way, since, when the invertebrates move away from the emitter due to gravity and marine currents, they fully recover their mobility. Once outside the device's range, they can move normally.

Simplicity is another of the virtues of this device: it consists of a floating buoy and a chain with a weight at the lower end so that the structure remains in a vertical position. It is completed by a series of coils that generate electromagnetic fields at different points along the chain and at different depths. According to the Valencian researchers, the device improves on existing ones because it "has greater efficacy", in addition to being "totally harmless and sustainable", as it generates a deterrent effect without causing any harm to jellyfish or producing any waste in the marine environment.

Unlike the nets currently used, which also affect other species, the new emitter "acts solely on jellyfish". This simplicity also translates to the price: according to the research group on Management and Restoration of Terrestrial and Marine Ecosystems at the University of Alicante, the buoy has "a lower cost than physical barriers and requires less maintenance due to its" smaller dimensions, as well as simple access that facilitates the repair or replacement of components.

Limitations of the device and alternatives

Despite the advantages of the new system, it still has some important limitations: the main one, its range of action. Its usefulness is reduced to beaches of between 200 and 300 meters at most. This is explained to ARA by the doctor in biology and co-director of the project, César Bordehore, who assures that this is because the system was not designed to protect swimmers. "It was devised for industry, for companies that capture water or discharge it, such as nuclear power plants, desalination plants, and aquaculture facilities, among others, and thus avoid the obstruction of pipes," he details.

The limited range of the buoy could lead to its combination with current anti-jellyfish nets, a system that governments like the Murcian one have been installing for years. In fact, this 2026 it will be placed on 55 beaches in the Mar Menor, with an extension of 43 kilometers. The nets will be deployed on June 15 and dismantled on October 1, once the bathing season ends.

For the buoys to reach the beaches, we will have to wait a little longer. At least until next summer. This is recognized by Bordehore, who details that the University of Alicante has made the new system public to find companies interested in its production and commercial exploitation. "So far, we have done tests in aquariums, but we need to do them in the sea. For this we need interested companies, but since it would be for a short period, next summer they could already be commercialized," he concludes.