Maritime Domain Research Articles

Unraveling the Maintenance of Southeast Asia Maritime Security; A Look into the ASEAN Maritime Outlook

The sea is an important engine of development for the growth of Southeast Asia. It has provided the states with new opportunities for growth and development. It is not surprising that many initiatives have been undertaken to leverage the vast sea in the region. Under Indonesia’s chairmanship, ASEAN’s focus towards the maritime domain was accentuated by the release of the ASEAN Maritime Outlook (AMO). This new addition to ASEAN’s maritime security instruments serves as a reference for upcoming endeavors on the field and to avoid duplication. Through using the qualitative research methods, the author seeks to explore the ways ASEAN has sought to maintain its multifaceted maritime security. Against that backdrop, apart from elaborating what the AMO has to offer, the author also unravels the strides ASEAN has taken in maintaining some dimensions to its maritime security. The aforementioned dimensions, referring to Christian Bueger, consisted of national security, human security, marine environment, and economic development. It is found how ASEAN’s effort to maintain maritime security is apparent in the initiatives done within its 3 pillars. Moreover, ASEAN also expands its effort by cooperating with actors outside of Southeast Asia in many aspects given the interconnectedness inherent to the sea. Based on the conclusion, it is recommended that ASEAN continues to prioritize and enhance its multifaceted approach to maritime security, building on the foundations laid by the ASEAN Maritime Outlook (AMO). ASEAN should intensify efforts to strengthen national security, human security, marine environment protection, and economic development through its three pillars: Political-Security Community, Economic Community, and Socio-Cultural Community. To further bolster these initiatives, ASEAN should deepen its cooperation with external partners, leveraging the interconnected nature of the maritime domain.

A Comprehensive Analysis of Maritime Cyber Security Incidents: Trends, Impacts, and Countermeasures

The maritime industry is currently experiencing a process of digital transformation, which involves a significant level of automation and enhanced communication with external networks. As a result, various facilities in the maritime sector such as commercial and navy vessels, shipping companies, ports, and shipbuilders, are becoming more susceptible to cyber threats. In addition to the potential economic and reputational harm to shipping companies, a cyber-attack on maritime systems could result in significant incidents such as the release of hazardous substances, collisions, grounding, and fires. This poses significant risks to both ship crew, ship, cargo, and environment. This study examines cyber security events in the maritime sector. The main objective is to cultivate a thorough comprehension of cyber-attacks that specifically target systems in maritime facilities, by analyzing insights derived from incidents in the Maritime Cyber-Attack Database. The work involves the construction and examination of a number of cyber security incidents. An inquiry is carried out to determine the time patterns, geographical spread, sector-specific consequences, and attributes of these cyber-attacks, including the identity of the perpetrator, intention (whether deliberate or unintentional), and the affected systems inside the maritime domain. The paper examines particular instances to identify the main stages of a cyber-attack on maritime facilities' systems, the fundamental strategies employed by attackers, and proposes standard cyber security solutions to reduce these risks. The study's contribution entails the methodical delineation of the cyber security terrain that is unique to the maritime industry.

A Lightweight, Polarization-Camera Equipped Sensor Rig for the Development of Autonomous Surface Vehicles

Abstract Situational Awareness (SITAW) of Autonomous Surface Vessels (ASV) is critical for safe and efficient maritime operations, enabling these vehicles to understand their environment better and make informed decisions. High-quality data sets from relevant maritime environments are needed to advance the development of SITAW, as it is both the backbone of any learning-based method and the development and validation of classical methods. Research vessels such as the full-scale ferry milliAmpere2 provide such data, but there tends to be a considerable labor cost associated with their operation. With this in mind, we have developed a portable sensor rig that makes collecting sensor data significantly easier. The sensor rig is designed for easy transport and operation by a single individual. It can also be temporarily attached to an existing vessel, making it versatile for a wide range of data collection scenarios. The sensor rig is equipped with a Jetson Orin AGX computer, two dual-band GNSS receivers, a high-quality IMU, and two color polarization cameras. Accurate synchronization of all sensors and the computer to UTC is achieved using a microcontroller for triggering and a custom Pulse Per Second (PPS)-enabled Linux kernel on the Jetson. The sensor rig is controlled and monitored by connecting a smartphone to its hosted web app, which provides a live stream from the cameras and information about the sensors. We present a new dataset from the river Nidelva in Trondheim, Norway, to demonstrate the sensor rig’s potential and the benefit of color polarization cameras in the maritime domain. We show how the data from color polarization cameras can be used directly to make the water surface more visibly distinct and remove reflections and sun glare. This new data set consists of synchronized stereo color polarization video, raw IMU data, and raw GNSS data, and it is made publically available to the research community.

Securitization of the maritime sector in Pakistan

Pakistan, under the influence of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), shifted its focus from “Geo-Strategy” to “Geo-Economics,” particularly highlighting its maritime potential. Former PM Imran Khan’s designation of 2020 as the Year of Blue Economy indicated a commitment to securitize the sea. Using the Copenhagen School’s framework, this study examines Pakistan’s initial steps in securitizing the maritime domain. Despite significant efforts, the outcome suggests a partial securitization, mainly marked by politicization rather than a comprehensive securitization of the maritime sector.

Analisa Strategis Kesiapan Operasional TNI Angkatan Laut dalam Menghadapi Dinamika Lingkungan Maritim

Indonesia, as the largest archipelagic nation globally, faces significant strategic challenges in its maritime domain. The Indonesian Navy's preparedness is paramount in safeguarding the nation's interests amid evolving geopolitical dynamics, resource competition, and maritime security threats such as piracy and terrorism. This paper examines the role and importance of the Operational Ready Force (ORF) within Indonesia's maritime defence strategy. By employing strategic analysis, the study evaluates the Navy's operational readiness, focusing on resource allocation, technological advancements, and international cooperation necessary to enhance the ORF's effectiveness. The research utilizes a comprehensive methodology, including literature review, official documents, and expert interviews, to provide an in-depth understanding of the Indonesian Navy's readiness to address dynamic maritime environments. The paper also explores the strategic implications of global, regional, and national maritime developments, emphasizing the necessity for an adaptive and resilient maritime strategy. The findings suggest that ORF is crucial in bolstering the Indonesian Navy's capabilities, enabling rapid and effective responses to maritime threats while protecting national sovereignty. The study concludes with recommendations for further development of ORF, ensuring Indonesia's continued maritime security and regional stability through integrated technology, strengthened international collaboration, and adaptive threat response strategies.

Challenges to the Capacity-Building of Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) in East Asia: What Is at Stake?

East Asian countries, including Northeast Asian countries such as China, Japan and Korea, and Southeast Asian countries such as the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore, have endeavored to enhance their maritime domain awareness (MDA) capabilities at either the state or regional level to mitigate, prevent or respond to maritime threats. Vibrant, dynamic East Asia comprises a huge diversity of cultures, religions, political systems, and security regimes, and their perceptions of and approaches to MDA are significantly varied. The regional states need to recognize the importance and value of MDA in ensuring maritime safety and security and to allocate more resources to build up their MDA capacities accordingly. In addition, closer collaboration between Northeast and Southeast Asian countries is required.

MAKG: A maritime accident knowledge graph for intelligent accident analysis and management

With the increasing frequency of human activities at sea, maritime accidents are occurring more often. Analyzing and mining maritime accident cases can help uncover the causal mechanisms behind these incidents, thereby enhancing maritime safety. As an emerging technology for knowledge management and mining, knowledge graphs offer significant support for the storage, reasoning, and decision-making processes related to maritime accidents.In this study, we established a knowledge graph construction and application framework for maritime accidents to facilitates the extraction and management of maritime knowledge from unstructured texts. First, 581 accident reports released by the China Maritime Safety Administration over the past decade (2014–2023) were used as the data basis for analysis and construction of the maritime accident ontology structure using the seven-step method, which comprises 8 entity types, 8 relationship types, and 18 attribute entity types. Second, We proposed MBERT-BiLSTM-CRF-SF, a named entity recognition model based on domain pretraining and self-training, to reduce graph construction costs. This model achieved state-of-the-art performance in the maritime domain, with an F1 score of 0.910 ± 0.006, which is about 5% higher than the mainstream model. In addition, we proposed an entity alignment method based on font and semantics to refine knowledge further. On the basis of the proposed method, we constructed a large, high-quality maritime accident knowledge graph (MAKG) system that contains 16,099 entities and 20,809 relationship instances. Finally, we reduced the complexity of applying knowledge graphs by integrating the CRISPE prompt learning framework of the large language model, and experiments on graph traversal, pattern recognition, and aggregation analysis were conducted to assess the quality of MAKG. Results demonstrate that MAKG can effectively enhance the efficiency of querying and reasoning about maritime accident information, thus providing significant support for the prevention and management of maritime accidents.

Maritime security and blue economy development in Nigeria: A structural equation model

The Nigerian Niger Delta region has been described as the epicenter of piracy and kidnapping for ransom of seafarers and other maritime crimes especially in the Gulf of Guinea region. This paper aimed to evaluate Maritime Security and Blue Economy development in Nigeria using structural equation model. The study adopted a quantitative research methodology and expost facto research design. A 33year (1990 - 2022) time series secondary data were sourced from International Maritime Bureau (IMB), Nigerian Ports Authority annual reports, CBN statistical bulletin, NOSDRA, and NPA annual statistics. The data obtained were transformed, cleaned, and subjected to Confirmatory factor analysis, measurement model and Structural equation modelling using AMOS (V23). From the structural equations analysis, the specified models met the minimum/necessary conditions (Df => 0) for model identification. The findings of the study revealed that 56 % of maritime security threats in Nigeria waters can be predicted by the number of crewmen kidnapped for ransom, 55 % by pirates’ attacks and 92 % by crude oil theft in Nigerian waters. Similarly, the results revealed that maritime security threats (MST) have a significant effect on blue economy development in Nigeria. Imperatively, adequate maritime security measures stimulate confidence among local and international stakeholders, attracting investments, encouraging trade partnerships, and enhancing the country’s position as a reliable maritime hub. Therefore, the study recommended that the Nigerian government should prioritise cooperation and collaborations with other regional navies to ensure adequate maritime domain awareness and security interdiction within her exclusive economic zone as provided by the Yaoundé code of conduct security architecture.

Circular Economy: Research in the Maritime Domain

The maritime domain is a very broad domain encompassing ship design, construction, transportation, export–import, port management, energy, ocean, and waterways management. The assumption that the marine industry is less flexible for a transition from linear economy to circular economy (CE) is being challenged. A ship is a factory/city in motion, and therefore, CE principles may be applied to a ship. CE principles can be applied to ports, energy, and waterways management. Successful implementation of CE requires a comprehensive mapping of business models, projects, products, and services; identification of all stakeholders; and using biomimicry in manufacturing. CE can help in the regeneration and restoration of natural capital. The circular business models can help in increasing revenue, reducing costs, and saving the environment. CE can be extended to include reimagining, realigning, reworking, and reaching out to different players in the maritime domain. The marine industry faces the challenges of decarbonization and end-of-life vessel management.

Online Ornstein–Uhlenbeck based anomaly detection and behavior classification using AIS data in maritime

Detecting anomalies in maritime systems involves recognizing vessel patterns that are not in line with what is expected or planned prior to the voyage. These patterns are identified for a variety of reasons at different stages. However, the available approaches are mostly focused on batch processing, which assumes that all data are available at once. Furthermore, limited attention has been paid to the identification of vessel behavior in the maritime domain. To gain a deeper understanding of the behavior of the vessel, this paper proposes a framework for online vessel anomaly detection and behavior identification for streaming AIS data. The framework employs an Ornstein–Uhlenbeck (OU)-based algorithm for anomaly detection and a machine learning-based behavior identification algorithm for ship behavior classification. In particular, we use the XGBoost algorithm as a classification method to distinguish various behaviors of vessels within the maritime domain. The proposed framework does not require labeled data for anomaly detection, and shows robustness in the presence of missing information (a passage plan, which contains the parameters to be followed during the voyage). The numerical results demonstrate that the proposed approach can achieve reasonable values of the F1 score for the various activities of the vessels.

A Hybrid Framework for Maritime Surveillance: Detecting Illegal Activities through Vessel Behaviors and Expert Rules Fusion.

Maritime traffic is essential for global trade but faces significant challenges, including navigation safety, environmental protection, and the prevention of illicit activities. This work presents a framework for detecting illegal activities carried out by vessels, combining navigation behavior detection models with rules based on expert knowledge. Using synthetic and real datasets based on the Automatic Identification System (AIS), we structured our framework into five levels based on the Joint Directors of Laboratories (JDL) model, efficiently integrating data from multiple sources. Activities are classified into four categories: illegal fishing, suspicious activity, anomalous activity, and normal activity. To address the issue of a lack of labels and integrate data-driven detection with expert knowledge, we employed a stack ensemble model along with active learning. The results showed that the framework was highly effective, achieving 99% accuracy in detecting illegal fishing and 92% in detecting suspicious activities. Furthermore, it drastically reduced the need for manual checks by specialists, transforming experts' tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge through the models and allowing continuous updates of maritime domain rules. This work significantly contributes to maritime surveillance, offering a scalable and efficient solution for detecting illegal activities in the maritime domain.

Exposure to Transnational Maritime Crime in the Pacific Islands Region

Although the Pacific Islands are strategically located alongside important trade routes, between the Global North and Global South countries and among plentiful fishing grounds, this region is considered among the lowest risk for land‐based organized crime. Grouped as a uniform region, collectively, the Pacific islands are anything but. The region consists of three ethnogeographic subregions with varying colonial, cultural, and legal legacies. Geographically, the Pacific Island states are remote, with small populations dispersed across many islands, some of which are uninhabited, limiting the ability to adequately surveil and protect this extensive maritime domain, creating porous land and sea borders. These challenges increase the complexity of policing the large exclusive economic zones of the region and therefore increase its vulnerability and potential exposure to various transnational organized crimes on land and at sea. Drawing on Kelling and Wilson’s broken windows theory, this article considers from a theoretical perspective, how international law can be used as a framework to guide Pacific Island states in achieving strengthened, region‐led resilience to transnational maritime crime in the pursuit of maritime justice.

Proposal of Innovative Methods for Computer Vision Techniques in Maritime Sector

Computer vision (CV) techniques have been widely studied and applied in the shipping industry and maritime research. The existing literature has primarily focused on enhancing image recognition accuracy and precision for water surface targets by refining CV models themselves. This paper introduces innovative methods to further improve the accuracy of detection and recognition using CV models, including using ensemble learning and integrating shipping domain knowledge. Additionally, we present a novel application of CV techniques in the maritime domain, expanding the research perspective beyond the traditional focus on the accurate detection and recognition of water surface targets. Specifically, a novel solution integrating a CV model and the transfer learning method is proposed in this paper to address the challenge of relatively low-speed and high-charge internet services on ocean-going vessels, aiming to improve the online video viewing experience while conserving network resources. This paper is of importance for advancing further research and application of CV techniques in the shipping industry.

Transition to the New Green Maritime Era—Developing Hybrid Ecological Fuels Using Methanol and Biodiesel—An Experimental Procedure

The conventional utilization of fossil fuels precipitates uncontrolled carbon dioxide and sulfur oxides emissions, thereby engendering pronounced atmospheric pollution and global health ramifications. Within the maritime domain, concerted global initiatives aspire to mitigate emissions by 2050, centering on the adaptation of engines, alteration of fuel compositions, and amelioration of exhaust gas treatment protocols. This investigation pioneers experimentation with marine gas oil augmented by methanol, a practice conventionally encumbered by prohibitively expensive additives. Successful amalgamation of methanol, animal-derived biodiesel, and marine gas oil (MGO) is empirically demonstrated under meticulously controlled thermal conditions, creating a homogeneous blend with virtually zero sulfur content and reduced carbon content, featuring characteristics akin to conventional marine gas oil but with no use of expensive emulsifiers. This new blend is suitable for employment in maritime engines utilizing Delaval technology, yet with significantly lower energy requirements compared to those necessitated using conventional very low sulfur fuel oil (VLSFO) with a maximum sulfur content of 0.5% w/w.

Addressing maritime security challenges through maritime domain awareness: a study of the role of the Information Fusion Centre-Indian Ocean Region

ABSTRACT In recent years, many non-traditional maritime safety and security threats viz. piracy, armed robberies at sea, maritime terrorism, human trafficking, drugs trafficking, illicit trafficking in wildlife, illegal deals in weapons, IUU fishing, dilapidation of ocean health and illegal exploitation of sea resources, etc. have emerged as real and serious challenges not only to the commercial shipping but also to the national security. A comprehensive response from the worldwide seafaring community is the need of the hour to tackle these maritime threats, both natural and man-made. India’s initiative of establishing the Information Fusion Centre-Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR) in the year 2018 can be regarded as a significant step in dealing with the variety of maritime security challenges. Jointly managed and run by the Indian Navy and Coast Guard, the IFC-IOR fulfils the purpose of creating Maritime Domain Awareness on the issues pertaining to maritime safety and security. Protecting maritime interests and augmenting security in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) is indispensable for maintaining free navigation and overflight, unconstrained commerce and a free, open and UNCLOS-based regime in the IOR.

Sailing into the future: technologies, challenges, and opportunities for maritime communication networks in the 6G era

The maritime domain is a major driver of economic growth with emerging services, comprising intelligent transportation systems (ITSs), smart ports, security and safety, and ocean monitoring systems. Sixth generation (6G) mobile networks will offer various technologies, paving the way for reliable and autonomous maritime communication networks (MCNs), supporting these novel maritime services. This review presents the main enabling technologies for future MCNs and relevant use cases, including ITSs with reduced carbon footprint, ports and maritime infrastructure security, as well as fault detection and predictive maintenance. Moreover, the current trends in integrated satellite-aerial-terrestrial-maritime network architectures are discussed together with the different network segments and communication technologies, and machine learning integration aspects.

India’s maritime security dilemma and geopolitical competition in Indo-Pacific

ABSTRACT Maritime security is a major concern in the contemporary global environment. Rapid technological progress has facilitated the exploration and utilisation of oceanic resources in remote offshore regions. Traditionally, the maritime domain has faced several threats, such as sea piracy, armed robberies, and illegal drugs. In the twenty-first century, with the rise of China as an important maritime power, geo-strategic competition has increased among great powers. India has long enjoyed a sphere of influence in the Indian Ocean Region has been challenged. The rise of China poses a credible security threat to India in the Indo-Pacific region. This article explores the dynamic backdrop of global, regional, and domestic politics and their effects on Indian foreign policy through the ocean. This article contends that the marine security initiatives and actions observed over the last decade necessitate more comprehensive consideration. In global maritime politics, India and the USA look to each other as partners to counterbalance China. Nevertheless, India is not ready for any military alliance against China based on Indian national interests. Therefore, this paper examines how India has pursued its ‘strategic autonomy’ in the region during the power rivalry between China and the US.

Regulatory Framework on Ocean Threats –Transportation Law Analysis to Multiple Oil-Spill Cases in Indonesia

This research aims to analyse the legislation pertaining to the environment and transportation as outlined in Article 1 point 1 of Law No. 22 of 2001, which deals with oil and natural gas. The Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources' Regulation No. 7 of 2019 Article 1.2 relates to the management and use of oil and gas. Articles 316, 318-322, 324-329, and 332 govern criminal offenses committed in the maritime domain. This study employs a doctrinal legal research methodology, using both conceptual approach and statutory approach. The agreement for the maritime transportation of commodities establishes rights and duties that the involved parties are required to fulfill. One of the duties and liabilities of the carrier is to maintain the security of the vessel and the merchandise it transports. The legal framework governing the transportation of commodities is established under Articles 466 to 520 of the Criminal Code. This concept is founded upon two additional ideas, i.e. strict liability and the absence of the necessity to establish the party responsible for environmental damage prior to attributing blame. The principle of strict responsibility in Indonesian national law is governed by Article 88 of Law No. 32 of 2009, which pertains to environmental protection and management. This article only focuses on the environmental degradation and marine contamination resulting from oil spills. The obligation for transportation in maritime agreements and the legal repercussions for causing marine pollution must be followed by all the sea transportations company especially carrying dangerous material.

Faster R–CNN, RetinaNet and Single Shot Detector in different ResNet backbones for marine vessel detection using cross polarization C-band SAR imagery

Detection of marine vessels plays an important role in monitoring, managing and securing seas and oceans, and forms the foundation of Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA). Although marine vessel detection has remained an active area of research for many years, unlike other object detectors, techniques of detection have been left far behind and lack systematic robustness. Hence, this study compared the performance of Faster R–CNN, RetinaNet and Single Shot Detector (SSD) across different epochs and complexities of ResNet architectures using Sentinel-1 VH polarization in one of the busiest ports in the Philippines. In particular, the models were created from the training samples dataset derived from Sentinel-1 VH imagery captured on January 12, 2024 in ResNet-34, -50, and −101 backbones, and 20 and 100 epochs. In this study, a total of 18 different object detector models were created for the comparative analysis. The models were tested with respect to different dates but having the same imagery type to determine their applicability across other base maps. Faster R–CNN with the highest F1 score of 0.85 outperformed RetinaNet with a highest F1 score of 0.74 and SSD with the highest F1 score of 0.38. The fastest model created was SSD, with an average speed of 9 to 44 minutes, followed by RetinaNet with an average speed of 8 to 58 minutes; the slowest is Faster R–CNN with an average speed of 25 minutes to 1 hour and 3 minutes. The use of Sentinel-1 VH imagery for marine vessel detection is a viable alternative, but the choice of object detectors should be carefully considered. The presence of geospatial software with advance deep learning tools improves remote sensing applications and allows non-programmers to optimize their competence. This study highlights the potential utilization of other imagery with higher spatial resolution, testing of other deep learning algorithms, finetuning of parameters, and utilization of higher computing infrastructure. The findings of this study can be applied in other areas for MDA, particularly in regions where advanced remote sensing applications have yet to be extensively explored.

The Impact of Operational Technology Requirements in Maritime Industries

The maritime ecosystem and industry require more efficient and coordinated cybersecurity governance. No common cybersecurity mechanism in the maritime sector may steer the whole supply chain management, for example, in the port areas and fairways. Cyberthreat prevention mechanisms in harbor areas and port terminals must be standardized more in the Western world. It has been recognized that understanding cybersecurity of operational technology in the harbor area is based on a more traditional experience of what it requires. The overall security of the maritime ecosystem requires more than random checks of passengers and vehicles and customs functions on cargo and passenger transportation, which are mainly physical security service routines. Traditional physical threats have changed to a combination of threat types. Hybrid threats may prevent everyday harbor activities so that damage can become long-lasting and harm overall business continuity management. It is crucial to prevent cyber threat factors in the maritime domain. The research provides transnational and EU-level cyber security assessments regarding cyber security regulation. The findings determine where to direct and concentrate a focus maritime domain and why it is essential to survey cyber security requirements set for member states to apply. In Finland, this research belongs to the cybersecurity governance of operational technology in the sector connected to the smart energy networks (CSG) research program. The project aims to develop a common cybersecurity governance model for operational technology.