Cornell University's 'Nova' 2009 Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV), just before release, diver disconnecting shore tethers, hoisting tackle. SPAWAR Transducer Test Facility, San Diego, 12th International Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Competition, sponsored by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) and the US Office of Naval Research. August 2, 2009. The mission is to 'Create a submersible vehicle which, acting autonomously, (disconnected from human direction or cont