Role & capabilities
- Long-duration environmental observation
- Naval oceanographic data collection
- Configurable acoustic sensing
- Primary domain
- Underwater
- System type
- Underwater glider
- Developer / manufacturer
- Teledyne Webb Research
- Origin / production countries
- United States
- Other names
- Slocum G3 glider
- Variants / configurations
- Shallow-water G3 configuration; 1,000 m G3 configuration
- Operators / programme customers
- US Navy — Slocum family, model mix not established
Evidence & current status
G3 baseline specifications come from a brochure whose filename mentions G3S but whose document title is G3. G3, Sentinel and Navy Littoral Battlespace Sensing configurations are not treated as identical.
Slocum G3 belongs to Teledyne's buoyancy-driven glider family. Instead of relying on continuous propeller thrust, it changes buoyancy and uses wings to travel through the water column. It periodically surfaces to communicate observations and receive instructions. This supports repeated environmental measurements over long deployments, with a very different speed and energy profile from a conventional propelled AUV.
The G3 brochure lists several battery choices, depth configurations and sensor options. Its longest advertised deployments use primary lithium batteries; they should not be assigned to the rechargeable configuration or to every sampling schedule. Optional thruster speed is also separate from normal gliding speed. Naval use is supported by Teledyne's report of more than 210 Slocum-family deliveries to the US Navy by May 2023, although that total is not exclusively G3 vehicles. In January 2026, a G3 with acoustic communications participated in a North Atlantic demonstration alongside a distinct Slocum Sentinel. The Sentinel's towed-array configuration should not be copied into the G3 specification.
Sourced specifications
Figures apply to the named configuration. Maximum values are not guaranteed operating performance.
| Specification | Reported value | Context & source |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration | Autonomous buoyancy-driven underwater glider | Published specification for the cited configuration; payload, environment and speed affect performance. Source ↗ |
| Hull / propulsion | Buoyancy engine and wings; optional electric thruster | Published specification for the cited configuration; payload, environment and speed affect performance. Source ↗ |
| Dimensions | 1.5 m vehicle length; 0.22 m hull diameter | Published specification for the cited configuration; payload, environment and speed affect performance. Source ↗ |
| Displacement / mass | 55–70 kg, configuration dependent | Published specification for the cited configuration; payload, environment and speed affect performance. Source ↗ |
| Payload | Not established in the reviewed public sources. | Public data gap; no estimate or neighbouring variant value substituted. Source ↗ |
| Endurance | Alkaline: 15–50 days; rechargeable lithium: 1–4 months; primary lithium: 4–18 months | Depends on battery option, sensors, sampling and communications. Source ↗ |
| Range | Alkaline: 350–1,200 km; rechargeable lithium: 700–3,000 km; primary lithium: 3,000–13,000 km | Different battery configurations; not simultaneous maximum endurance/range guarantees. Source ↗ |
| Speed | Average gliding 0.35 m/s; optional thruster up to 1 m/s | Published specification for the cited configuration; payload, environment and speed affect performance. Source ↗ |
| Operating depth | Selectable 4–150 m or 40–1,000 m operating bands | Published specification for the cited configuration; payload, environment and speed affect performance. Source ↗ |
| Sensors | Configurable oceanographic and acoustic sensors | Published specification for the cited configuration; payload, environment and speed affect performance. Source ↗ |
| Communications / control | RF, Iridium, ARGOS or acoustic options; periodic surfacing | Published specification for the cited configuration; payload, environment and speed affect performance. Source ↗ |
| Launch / deployment | One or two-person deployment; optional launch/recovery equipment | Published specification for the cited configuration; payload, environment and speed affect performance. Source ↗ |
Documented milestones
North Atlantic demonstration concluded
A Teledyne demonstration held 17–22 January included a Slocum G3 with acoustic communications, separately from a Sentinel glider.
Read the announcement ↗US Navy deployment trial reported
Teledyne described a helicopter launch trial and stated that over 210 Slocum-family vehicles had been delivered to the Navy.
Read the announcement ↗
Publication history
- — Added sourced land and maritime coverage with domain-specific evidence and limitations.
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Follow the evidence
Source types identify who makes the claim. Programme milestones and supplier statements should be read in context.