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MTS Journal Submissions

MTS invites you to help shape the future of our field. Your expertise is essential to driving innovation, strengthening our community, and advancing the global conversation in ocean science and technology. 

Step forward. Share your knowledge. Lead the next wave of progress.

MTS Journal Submissions

The Marine Technology Society Journal stands as a leading peer-reviewed publication advancing the frontiers of marine technology and ocean engineering. We welcome submissions that present original, impactful research and bold ideas that move our industry forward. 

We encourage contributions that showcase significant scientific and technical discoveries, innovative engineering solutions, and informed perspectives on ocean policy, law, and economic issues. Each manuscript plays a vital role in shaping the knowledge base that guides our global ocean community. 

Join us in elevating the conversation and setting the standard for excellence in marine technology. 

[LINK TO SUBMISSION FORM]

Current Call for Papers

There are currently no open calls for themed issues or special collections. New opportunities will be announced here—please check back soon for updates.

Review Process

All submissions undergo a rigorous peer-review process lasting approximately 3–4 months. Following an initial editorial assessment, qualifying manuscripts are reviewed by at least two independent experts. Authors revise their work based on reviewer feedback; manuscripts requiring substantial revisions may undergo a second review cycle. 

Final publication timing is subject to scheduled theme issues and production backlog. 

When submitting a scientific or technical paper, authors must recommend four qualified reviewers unaffiliated with the authors’ institutions to ensure an objective evaluation. 

Categories of Submissions

All categories of submissions should be double-spaced, one column, and in a font size of 12 points with 1-inch margins all around. They should follow the Manuscript Style described in the section below. 

  1. Technical Article: Technical articles present new empirical research findings and should fully address a topic that is timely and significant to the marine engineering, technology, and science communities. Articles should be no longer than 25 double-spaced pages (excluding figures and references), and include no more than 10 figures. 
  2. Technical Note: Technical notes also present new empirical research findings but may be less fully developed than articles. Notes may be works-in-progress, addenda to previously published work, or expansions of conference presentations. Notes should be no longer than 10 double-spaced pages (excluding figures and references), and include no more than 3 figures. 
  3. Systematic Review or Synthesis: Systematic reviews and syntheses may be literature reviews, meta-analyses, or historical retrospectives related to a topic of interest to the marine engineering, science, and policy community. Systematic literature reviews and meta-analyses should follow best practice guidelines for those methods, and authors should describe their systematic methods in sufficient detail to allow replicability. Reviews and syntheses should be no more than 25 double-spaced pages (excluding figures and references), and should contain no more than 10 figures.
  4. Commentary: Commentaries offer an informed point of view on a topic of current interest to the marine engineering, science, and policy community. Perspective authors should note that Commentaries should not be advertisements for promoting commercial products. Commentaries should be between 2 and 10 double-spaced pages.
  5. Book Review: The MTS Journal solicits and publishes reviews of recently published books that are timely and relevant to the interests of its readers. Reviewers should be no longer than 4 double-spaced pages.

 

Manuscript Style

Abstract

  • The abstract should be 250 words or fewer and should be a statement of the problem to be addressed.
  • It should identify the issues and describe the nature and utility of the results.
  • Abstracts are used in the online MTS website database and elsewhere.
  • Include up to five keywords or phrases for your manuscript. 

Citations

  • Use an (Author, date) in-text citation style.
  • If the name of the author appears as part of the narrative, cite only the publication year in parenthesis: Smith (2012) found that…
  • Otherwise, place both author surname and data in parenthesis:….study shows a predicted energy increase of 15% by 2030 (Smith, 2012).
  • Multiple citations are separated by a semi-colon: (Smith, 2012; Roberts, 1999; Jones et. al., 2013).
  • For works by multiple authors, list all authors in the first citation.
  • If there are up to 5 authors, use all names in the first citation, and the surname with “et al.” for subsequent citations.
  • For works with 2 authors, use both surnames for all citations (Smith & Jones, 2010).
  • For works with more than 5 authors, use the surname and “et al.” for all citations. 

Headers

  • Up to three levels of headers may be used.
  • The first level should be bold.
  • The second level should be bold italics. 
  • The third level should be italics. 
  • If more than three levels of headers are needed, please use a number systems to denote the different levels.
  • All headers should have the first words capitalized. 

References

  • References should be listed following acknowledgements in alphabetical order by the first author’s last name.
  • References must be referred to in the text in the form of (author’s last name, year of publication); numbered footnotes should not be used.
  • Complete and correct references are the author’s responsibility. 
  • Full journal titles should be used; abbreviated journal titles should not be used. 
  • If an author list includes more than 7 names, include the first 6 names and the last name, following an ellipsis: Author, A., Author B., Author C., Author D., Author E., Author F., …Author, S. 2010. …
  • If you have more than one reference with the same lead author and publication date, do not use (a), (b) notations with the date unless the list of authors is identical.
  • If not identical, include as many subsequent author names as necessary to distinguish the correct reference. 

References Format


Article in Journal
  • Author(s) (Last name, initials). Year. Title of article. Title of journal, volume number (issue number): inclusive pages.
  • Example: Ayala, S.C. & D’Alessandro, A. 1973. Insect feeding behavior of some Columbian fruit-eating bats. Journal of Mammalogy, 54(1): 266-67.
Book Chapter
  • Author(s) (Last name, initials). Year. Title of chapter. In: Title of Book. Editors, inclusive pages. Publisher Location: Publisher.
  • Example: Baker, H.G., Bawa, K.S., Frankie, G.W., & Opler, P.A. 1983. Reproductive biology of plants in tropical forests. In: Tropical Rain Forest Ecosystems, Ed. F.G. Golley, pp.183−215. Amsterdam: Elsevier.
Book
  • Author(s) (Last name, initials). Year. Title of Book. Publisher Location: Publisher.
  • Example: Merk, J.S., Fogg, I.J., & Snowe, C.A. 1987. Astrology for the Beginning Meteorologist. Chicago: Darkweather and Clere.
Proceedings
  • Author(s) (Last name, initials). Date. Name of paper. In: Name of Proceedings, name of conference, inclusive pages (if applicable). Location: Publisher. DOI if there is one.
  • Example: Simon, P.A. 1987. Operational considerations for a scientist-piloted research submersible. In: Intervention ’87, ROV ’87 Conference, pp. 79-82. San Diego, CA: Marine Technology Society.
Thesis
  • Author (Last name, initials). Year. Name of thesis. Masters/Ph.D. thesis, Name of university.
  • Example: Rintoul, B. 1988. Mass, heat and nutrient fluxes in the Atlantic Ocean determined by inverse methods. Ph.D. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology/ Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute Joint Program.

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Abbreviations

  • Acronyms and other abbreviations must be identified the first time they are used in a paper.
  • The solitary use of an abbreviation or acronym is discouraged.
  • All capital letters should be used only for an acronym. 
  • Ship and underwater vehicle names should be italicized. 
  • For example: Dolphin refers to the U.S. Navy’s deep diving test submarine, while DOLPHIN (Deep Ocean Logging Profiler with Hydrographic Instrumentation and Navigation) refers to Canada’s remote controlled survey submarine.

Measurements and Numbers

  • For consistency and ease in comparison, the International System of Units (SI) should be used. 
  • Measurements should be identified the first time they are used. 
  • Symbols for a unit of measurement are not to be punctuated and should be used only when proceeded by a number (e.g., “5 km but “a few kilometers”). 
  • For specific questions regarding style, please consult The Chicago Manual of Style by the University of Chicago Press or contact the managing editor. 

Policy on the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Technology

All types of submission must adhere to the policies below. 

Text generated with the assistance of AI technologies must be disclosed in the Methods or Acknowledgements section of the article. The following information must be specified:

  1. Names of all tools used
  2. A description of how the tools were used (e.g., inputs)
  3. A description of the parts of the article in which AI generated or assisted text appears
  4. A description of how the authors evaluated the AI-generated text for accuracy and validity. Fictitious research data generated by AI is not allowed. 

As with any article, it is the authors’ responsibility to ensure the following:

  1. All text is accurate and valid
  2. Proper citation practices are followed
  3. None of the text is plagiarized

Images: AI-generated images cannot be used.

Authorship: AI technologies cannot be listed as authors.

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