A fleet of drones would be a key part in staving off another major offshore oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, according to a new report issued by a task force created after the worst oil spill in the energy industry’s history.

The National Academies of Sciences’ Gulf program issued a report Wednesday that calls for investments in all manner of autonomous vessels, including miniature drone-like submarines and underwater gliders to track oil flows along the Gulf’s sometimes unpredictable underwater currents.

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