Norway is developing a new unmanned surface vessel designed to hunt Russian submarines in the Arctic and North Atlantic. Named Arctic Hunter, the drone is being built by Kongsberg Maritime and will be capable of remaining at sea for up to 60 days while searching for and tracking underwater targets, Naked Science reports.

The vessel could eventually become part of Britain’s anti-submarine defense network. Its development follows the Royal Navy’s requirements for Type 92 unmanned platforms, which are intended to support extended surveillance operations in northern waters.

Rather than designing the vessel entirely from scratch, Kongsberg Maritime has based Arctic Hunter on an existing commercial ship design. The platform will incorporate the company’s remote-control and autonomous navigation technologies, allowing it to operate without a crew and carry out routine tasks with minimal human involvement.

A central feature of Arctic Hunter will be its underwater detection equipment. The vessel is expected to carry the Sonar 2087 towed sonar system developed by Thales Underwater Systems. Designed to locate submerged objects, the large acoustic array will provide the platform with its primary submarine detection capability. Kongsberg believes deploying such equipment aboard an unmanned vessel could significantly strengthen the Royal Navy’s anti-submarine warfare capabilities.

The project also fits into Britain’s broader Hybrid Fleet strategy, which aims to bring conventional warships, aircraft and autonomous maritime platforms together into a combined naval force. Type 92 is one of four categories of unmanned systems included in the program. These platforms are expected to improve the fleet’s ability to detect targets and expand its weapons employment capabilities.

Endurance is another major advantage of the Arctic Hunter design. According to Kongsberg Maritime’s estimates, the vessel will be able to spend as long as two months at sea without anyone aboard. Throughout these extended missions, its autonomous systems are intended to handle everyday operations without requiring continuous intervention from a human operator.