Robot fish check water quality off the coast of Spain

In the wake of the oil-gushing environmental disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, these peculiar fish may soon be very, very popular around the world. Scientists are building a school of robot fish to be let loose off the northern Spanish port of Gijon next year to check on the quality of the water. Modeled to resemble carp and costing about $29,000 each to make, the fish are lifelike in appearance and swimming behavior so they will not alarm their fellow marine inhabitants.

The robots, the first of their kind, are equipped with tiny chemical sensors capable of detecting pollutants in the water. These let the fish hone in on the sources of hazardous pollutants, such as leaks from vessels or undersea pipelines, and transmit the data via wireless technology to expedite clean-up efforts.