Millions of tons of plastic waste end up in the ocean every day. There is no way around this problem. Trash floats in the ocean and then sinks. Researchers have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) model that can detect plastic in the ocean. The artificial intelligence model analyzes satellite images to detect plastic waste accumulating in coastal areas and oceans.

Additionally, satellite imagery can be analyzed faster and more efficiently than ever before. This allows floating plastic to be easily and accurately identified. The model provides accurate information even when satellite images are partly cloudy or blurry due to bad weather.

Currently, the amount of plastic waste is increasing due to the increased use of plastic products and is expected to increase further in the future. Large amounts of plastic waste accumulate in rivers, lakes or oceans because it is not properly treated or recycled. Researchers at Wageningen University and Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in the Netherlands are working on artificial intelligence-based models.

The research on the artificial intelligence-based model was published in the journal iScience. Artificial intelligence data creates new opportunities to use garbage clean-up ships to remove plastic waste from the ocean. Detecting marine debris by analyzing Sentinel 2 satellite imagery.

The satellite captures images of coastal areas around the world. Storing these images requires hundreds of terabytes of storage space that humans cannot analyze quickly. This data is also automatically analyzed by artificial intelligence models such as neural networks. 

Scientist Mark also said that artificial intelligence models can provide accurate information even in difficult situations. The model accurately detects marine debris or debris even in clouds or fog. After the 2019 floods in Durban, South Africa, plastic waste ended up in the sea.

From this artificial intelligence model, we can learn about the distribution of plastic waste in the Indian Ocean.