TECHNICAL ARTICLES

HYDROGRAPHIC MAPPING BY COMBINED OPERATIONS USING BATHYMETRIC LIDAR AND MULTIBEAM ECHOSOUNDER IN ALASKA
Dean Moyles, Andy Orthmann and Carol Lockhart, Fugro Pelagos Inc, San Diego, California
and
Jana DaSilva Lage, Fugro Pelagos Inc, Anchorage, Alaska

 

Abstract
During the 2004 field season, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) awarded Fugro Pelagos Inc (FPI) the first task order ever, to require simultaneously collected Airborne LIDAR Bathymetry (ALB) and ship based multibeam bathymetry. The survey area, in the vicinity of Sitka, Alaska, consisted of a single 20.7 square nautical miles sheet containing a highly irregular shoreline with many islets, rocks, foul areas, and kelp.
The primary objective of the survey was to provide data in support of nautical charting for navigation safety in this intricate area of islands and drying reefs. To complete this complex task, FPI utilised different survey platforms to support the necessary equipment, which included the SHOALS-1000T ALB system, as well as the Reson 8101 and Reson 8111 multibeam systems.
The SHOALS-1000T provides both bathymetric and topographic LIDAR mapping capabilities. In addition to the LIDAR bottom reflectivity, an integral part of the FPI ALB data acquisition includes geo-referenced digital ortho-photos, which are used to produce a detailed aerial mosaic of the survey area.
Nautical charting in the Sitka region of Alaska was successfully and economically completed using integrated ALB and ship-based multibeam echosounding (MBES) operations. The use of these methods results in the fusion of airborne and acoustic data co-registered with high-resolution terrain mapping. Navigation safety and scientific information for this area are significantly enhanced by the high-resolution, 100% coverage of MBES plus 200% ALB data over the shoal zones surrounding the numerous islets.

.
 

Download article as PDF:

   THJ No. 117 - Paper 3.pdf (420 Kb)
(RightClick > Save Target As to Download)
 

You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader version 3 or newer.
If you don't have a copy of that program you can obtain
one for free at the Adobe website