Alan McKenna from Loch Ness Exploration remarked, "At first we believed that the hydrophone might be getting dragged along the bottom but the boat skipper confirmed the cable was at least five metres from the bottom," adding, "You can clearly hear a rhythmic pulse or heartbeat within the recording. We've no idea what was causing this sound but it's very interesting."
A frequent visitor to Loch Ness, Alan spends hours aboard the Deepscan boat with skipper Ali Matheson.
They were investigating Urquhart Bay on Saturday (August 10), which is famous for a controversial underwater image supposedly depicting a plesiosaur flipper snapped back in 1972.
Holidaymaker Jarod Strong earlier claimed he had seen the mythical beast this year, noting it was grey instead of green.
Steve Valentine, a dad of four, last October was sure he'd spotted "the hump of Nessie's body and the back of its head". With the new audio discovery, Alan McKenna's curiosity grows as he told the Daily Record about his eagerness to dive deeper into the mystery.
He detailed the deployment, "We deployed the hydrophone which was lowered down to 30 metres below the surface close to where Robert Rines' strobe camera was placed in 1972."
"At around 10.41am, we started to pick up a strange sound. This is the first time hearing the pulse or heartbeat so clearly. I'm not suggesting it's a heartbeat; I'm merely using that as a description."
"It's a strange one indeed but that's why my research is so interesting. We still can't accurately identify some sounds and that's all part of the mystery. It's frustrating at times but always leaves you wanting more."
"When it comes to exploring the depths of Loch Ness, our options are limited by its incredible depth and darkness."
"It's a place of mystery with dangers that are unpredictable and a legend of a large, unknown creature possibly lurking below. While we rely on sonar and surface observations, the visibility in Loch Ness is extremely poor, making these methods challenging."
"So sound is the next best option. A hydrophone is essentially an underwater microphone capable of detecting sounds hundreds of feet below the surface. Its sensitivity allows it to pick up sounds from miles away, including the faint hum of a boat traversing the loch."
Mr McKenna disclosed that their mission is to "record and catalog" a host of submarine sounds, identifying their origins and deciphering what they might "signify".
He detailed that the study intends to distinguish natural noises from those produced by humans or machines, conceding that recognizing species on the basis of "sound alone" is a "daunting task".
But Mr McKenna confessed their excitement at the possibility of detecting an undisclosed creature "should it exist".
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