The full-scale prototype Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (UUV), developed under a contract with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in 2020, has a stylish design optimized for underwater gliding.

What is known about Manta Ray

The autonomous vehicle has the ability to move independently between enemy territory and remain stationary on the ocean floor for long periods of time, ready for action if needed.

Manta Ray’s exact role remains a mysteryNorthrop Grumman and DARPA offer cryptic explanations of its purpose. Speculation ranges from its potential as a lethal weapon against enemy submarines to its usefulness in collecting deep-sea reconnaissance data, or perhaps a combination of both functions.

Northrop Grumman describes the Manta Ray as a “super-large glider” designed for long-duration unmanned underwater missions, leaving room for interpretation as to its specific capabilities, which could include everything from environmental monitoring to strike operations.

DARPA, on the other hand, sees the Manta Ray as a force multiplier that provides additional capabilities to combatant commanders by operating independently of manned ships and ports once deployed.

Alan Little, Northrop Grumman’s Vice President of Strategy and Mission Solutions, noted the platform’s versatility and emphasized its importance in undersea warfare and its unified command and control strategy across all domains of the Department of Defense.

Although DARPA outlines potential applications such as Detection and classification of underwater threats, including the possibility of countering enemy detection systemsThe exact nature of Manta Ray’s abilities remains unclear.

There has been much speculation about its potential applications, ranging from underwater mapping and mine detection to passive surveillance, similar to similar projects such as the US Navy’s super-large unmanned aerial vehicle Orca developed by Boeing.

However, the timing and true purpose of Manta Ray’s deployment will likely remain secret for the foreseeable future, underscoring the sensitivity of military technology and operations.