StationKeeper Unit at Sandy Neck Lighthouse is Operational

During mid-winter and spring, Cape Cod Bay in Massachusetts is a vital feeding ground and nursery for endangered North Atlantic right whales. Up to 75% of the entire marine mammal species relies on this protected bay to regale on dense patches of zooplankton before continuing their migration.

Cape Cod Bay offers dense concentrations of copepods (tiny crustaceans) near the surface of the water, which allows mothers to teach their calves how to forage. However, as the North Atlantic right whales feed at the surface of the bay, this makes them very vulnerable to vessel strikes and fishing gear entanglements.

To help mitigate the hazard of vessel strikes, MotionInfo is working with NOAA and marine conservationists up and down the Atlantic seaboard to install AIS-based StationKeeper units at shore sites, which are designed to send speed reduction text messages to vessels in the vicinity of whales.

On June 13, 2026, the equipment for the StationKeeper unit inside Sandy Neck Lighthouse (Barnstable, MA) was made operational thanks to the team efforts of ALF’s Gary Childs, Jared Fulcher and Sam Lawrence.

Since there is no commercial power available at Sandy Neck Lighthouse, the team installed a solar panel on the tower’s exterior gallery, and batteries inside the lantern to store the renewable energy necessary to operate StationKeeper. The StationKeeper installation has the blessing of the light station’s private owner, who is happy to be part of a larger effort to help protect the threatened North Atlantic right whale.

However, the evolution was not without its challenges. According to Gary Childs, an American Lighthouse Foundation board of director and chairperson for ALF’s Cape Cod Chapter, access proved to be a bit of a quandary. “We had to travel six miles down the sandy Marsh Trail at low tide where piping plovers occupy most of the beach,” said Childs.

Despite the inherent hurdles associated with a remote site like Sandy Neck Lighthouse, the project was worth every effort made by MotionInfo and the install team. As Gary Childs noted, “Sandy Neck Lighthouse is important because it covers Cape Cod Bay from the east end of the Cape Cod Canal to Provincetown, which is a prime location for the North Atlantic right whale.”

After the StationKeeper equipment was installed, Moses Calouro, CEO of MotionInfo, confirmed the team’s successful efforts, saying, “The unit is connected and sending data – it looks good from this end.” Mission accomplished!

The American Lighthouse Foundation is collaborating with MotionInfo to install StationKeeper units in lighthouses throughout New England, including the states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine. The StationKeeper network, which is growing by the month, stretches from Downeast Maine to Florida.

As for Sandy Neck Light, the American Lighthouse Foundation returned the lantern to this formerly “headless” lighthouse in 2005. Two years later, ALF relit the lighthouse as a private aid to navigation. At the time, these projects were spearheaded by the Cape Cod Chapter’s indomitable volunteer, James Walker. Today, ALF’s Cape Cod Chapter continues to care for the lantern and ensures the private aid to navigation at Sandy Neck is watching properly.