People

The team of this project is an interdisciplinary team from the school of engineering at Newcastle University with background in Robotics, Artificial Intelligence and Marine technology. 

Dr. Ammar Al Mhdawi, PhD

  • Post Doctoral Research Associate
  • School of Engineering
  • Email:
  • Responsible for The project design and development that include, development of the micro thruster system with control circuit design and implementation of AI capabilities.

Prof. Dr. Nick Wright, PhD

  • Primary Investigator | Project Manager
  • School of Engineering
  • Email:
  • Responsible for supervising the project research team along with managing research operations, including providing guidance and regulatory compliance.

Dr. Simon Benson, PhD

  • Co-Investigator | Director of the Marine Propulsion Research Laboratory
  • School of Engineering
  • Email:
  • Provide guidance on application of numerical and experimental methods to predict the tether interaction underwater

Dr. Maryam Haroutunian, PhD

  • Co-Investigator | Director of Newcastle University's Sonardyne Robotics and Autonomous Systems Student Laboratory
  • School of Engineering
  • Email:
  • Provide guidance on tether Hydrodynamics, underwater vehicles, and Bio inspiration