SOLUTION / PUBLIC SOURCE RECORD
OceanTherm prevents hurricanes with bubbles
- Published 21 March 2023; updated 21 September 2026; estimated reading time 2 minutes. Status is “Under development”; category Maritime.
- OceanTherm is developing a bubble-curtain system intended to cool warm surface water and weaken hurricanes or tropical storms. The concept uses a perforated pipe laid across a stretch of water, such as a narrow strait; compressed-air bubbles rise from depth and bring colder deep water toward the surface.
- The article explains the concept through the claim that hurricanes draw energy from ocean water warmer than 26.5°C. It says cooling surface water might deprive storms of energy before landfall or limit their strengthening. This is a proposed effect, not an established operational capability.
- A Norwegian pilot conducted with research institute SINTEF demonstrated that the bubble curtain can bring cold deep water to the surface; the company says further work is needed to improve efficiency and scale and to test in ocean conditions representative of hurricane regions. The page labels the solution under development.
- The technology builds on established Norwegian uses of bubble curtains to keep fjords free of ice and to restrict oil spills in enclosed or sensitive areas.
- The article cites past impacts of Hurricanes Katrina (over 1,800 deaths and USD 90 billion damage, 2005) and Matthew (852 deaths, 2016) as context. It says potential benefits, if the system works at scale, could include reducing loss of life, environmental damage and economic costs.
- Target markets named are East Asian countries and the southeastern US, plus other hurricane- and typhoon-exposed regions. The page mentions ongoing collaboration with SINTEF and media coverage from 2020; it gives no market-size estimate.
- Linked to SDG 1, No poverty; SDG 9, Industry, innovation and infrastructure; SDG 11, Sustainable cities and communities; and SDG 13, Climate action, as a potential disaster-risk-reduction measure.
- Contact: Olav Bjørnsund Hollingsæter, Founder and CEO, olav@oceantherm.no. Phone number is behind a collapsed reveal control. Company: OCEANTHERM AS, c/o Forskningsparken i Vestfold, Raveien 205, 3184 Borre, Norway; oceantherm.no.