Hydrographic Surveying & Sounding Equipment

process of measuring and mapping the physical features of bodies of water, particularly the bathymetry of the seafloor.

measurement and representation of underwater depths and the shape of the seafloor.

one of the most important operations in hydrographic surveying.

shape and elevation of the bottom surface of a body of water.

process of measuring the depth of the bed of a body of water at a particular point, or measuring the depth below the water surface.

measure water depth through physical contact with the bed.

determine water depth using acoustic signals and reflected sound waves.

sounding technique that physically measures water depth using a rod, line, or mechanical device.

graduated rod or pole used to directly measure water depth.

Not advisable in areas with strong currents because maintaining verticality is difficult, resulting in incorrect readings.

thin rope with a plummet attached at its end, used to measure water depth.

weighted object attached to the end of a sounding line to reach the waterbed.

most common material used for the plummet

Considered the most primitive tool for depth measurement.

Not suitable for swift-flowing water or areas with strong currents.

occurs when water current pushes the sounding line away from the vertical position.

Measured line length becomes greater than the true water depth.

More noticeable in deep and swift-flowing water.

A correction must be applied to obtain the correct depth.

improved version of the leadline method that uses a rotating barrel and flexible wire to measure water depth.

stores and releases the sounding wire.

connects the barrel to the lead weight.

lowered into the water to reach the bed.

raises or lowers the wire.

sounding technique that determines water depth using acoustic signals instead of physical contact with the waterbed.

method that uses sound waves to determine underwater depth.

device in SONAR that converts electrical energy from the transmitter into high-frequency sound waves.

system that uses sound waves to detect and measure underwater objects and distances.

instrument that determines water depth by transmitting underwater sound pulses and receiving echoes reflected from the riverbed or seabed.

emits underwater supersonic pulses.

receives echoes reflected from the riverbed or seabed.

instrument that determines water depth by measuring the time interval between the emitted sound pulse and its returning echo.

short sound pulse emitted by the transducer.

small area of the bottom covered or insonified by a single sonar pulse.

process of filling an area with sound waves.

instrument that maps a wide, contiguous area of the seafloor using multiple sound beams.

transducer feature that allows sound beams to cover a wide area across the vessel's path.

width of the seabed area covered by the multibeam system in one pass.

Provides wider and more continuous seabed coverage than a single beam echosounder.

hydrographic echosounder that uses a sweep system to map the seafloor across a swath width.

system used to obtain bottom coverage across a wider area.