A Review of Oceanographic Applications of Water Column Data from Multibeam Echosounders
TL;DR: In this paper, a wealth of studies using water column multibeam data to address questions in fisheries, marine mammal and zooplankton research as well as seeps and hydrothermal vents.
Abstract: Multibeam echosounder systems (MBES) have long provided bathymetric data with high temporal and spatial resolution. In the last couple of decades, MBES observations of scattering in the water column have been finding increasing use in oceanographic studies. Here we review the wealth of studies using water column multibeam data to address questions in fisheries, marine mammal and zooplankton research as well as seeps and hydrothermal vents. We also summarize some of the tantalizing new oceanographic applications of water column MBES, such as kelp ecosystems, near surface bubbles, suspended sediment, mixing and internal waves, as well as the proper determination of the extent of shipwreck above the sea floor. We highlight the many advantages of using water column MBES and discuss the challenges.
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TL;DR: Seagrass meadows are key elements of marine ecosystems as they affect the physical, chemical and biological environment and provide habitats for fish and invertebrates as mentioned in this paper. But human activities have caused...
Abstract: Seagrass meadows are key elements of marine ecosystems as they affect the physical, chemical and biological environment and provide habitats for fish and invertebrates. Human activities have caused...
53 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors presented a framework for seagrass habitat mapping in shallow (5-50 m) and very shallow water (0-5 m) by combining acoustic, optical data and object-based image classification.
Abstract: In this study, we present a framework for seagrass habitat mapping in shallow (5–50 m) and very shallow water (0–5 m) by combining acoustic, optical data and Object-based Image classification. The combination of satellite multispectral images-acquired from 2017 to 2019, together with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) photomosaic maps, high-resolution multibeam bathymetry/backscatter and underwater photogrammetry data, provided insights on the short-term characterization and distribution of Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile, 1813 meadows in the Calabrian Tyrrhenian Sea. We used a supervised Object-based Image Analysis (OBIA) processing and classification technique to create a high-resolution thematic distribution map of P. oceanica meadows from multibeam bathymetry, backscatter data, drone photogrammetry and multispectral images that can be used as a model for classification of marine and coastal areas. As a part of this work, within the SIC CARLIT project, a field application was carried out in a Site of Community Importance (SCI) on Cirella Island in Calabria (Italy); different multiscale mapping techniques have been performed and integrated: the optical and acoustic data were processed and classified by different OBIA algorithms, i.e., k-Nearest Neighbors’ algorithm (k-NN), Random Tree algorithm (RT) and Decision Tree algorithm (DT). These acoustic and optical data combinations were shown to be a reliable tool to obtain high-resolution thematic maps for the preliminary characterization of seagrass habitats. These thematic maps can be used for time-lapse comparisons aimed to quantify changes in seabed coverage, such as those caused by anthropogenic impacts (e.g., trawl fishing activities and boat anchoring) to assess the blue carbon sinks and might be useful for future seagrass habitats conservation strategies.
41 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors presented a new technique advancing automated detection of bubble streams and moving toward a quantitative gas-release assessment by using spatio-temporal behavior even when they are discontinuous in WCI data.
Abstract: Water Column Imaging Multibeam Echosounder Systems (MBES) are effective and sensitive tools for investigating free gas (bubble) release and its rise through the water column. The main advantages of MBES are the detection range and lateral coverage in the water column and at the seafloor; furthermore, they are becoming increasingly available on research vessels worldwide. However, high noise levels and systematic artefacts due to side-lobe induced signal interference degrade MBES Water Column Images (WCIs) and hampered automated bubble detection and related gas seepage investigations. We present a new technique advancing automated detection of bubble streams and moving toward a quantitative gas-release assessment. It is shown that bubble streams can be detected reliably by their spatio-temporal behavior even when they are discontinuous in WCI data. Using assumptions about the bubble rising trajectories, bubble release spots at the seafloor can be traced even if the source location is obscured by acoustic noise or unwanted acoustic targets. A map with acoustic response and source locations of bubbles being released can be produced and serves as a starting point for more detailed quantitative analyses. The efficiency of the method has been assessed at a methane seep site in the Dutch North Sea. Multiple survey lines are merged to a detailed acoustic map of the area. Processed results are in good agreement with manual investigations of the WCI data as well as ROV-based video analysis.
41 citations
Cites background from "A Review of Oceanographic Applicati..."
...8.3; Colbo et al. 2014) operated with standard ancillary sensors and data (GPS navigation, ship motion, sound velocity profiles)....
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...…which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. release and manually localizing (picking) the source positions (Schneider von Deimling et al. 2007; Nikolovska et al. 2008; Gardner et al. 2009; Weber et al. 2012; Colbo et al. 2014)....
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...release and manually localizing (picking) the source positions (Schneider von Deimling et al. 2007; Nikolovska et al. 2008; Gardner et al. 2009; Weber et al. 2012; Colbo et al. 2014)....
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University of Oxford1, University of Salford2, University of St Andrews3, Centre national de la recherche scientifique4, University of South Florida5, Stockholm University6, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences7, Åbo Akademi University8, Dalhousie University9, Griffith University10, Institut de recherche pour le développement11, North Carolina State University12, University of the Sunshine Coast13, Södertörn University14, University of California, Santa Barbara15, Louisiana State University16, San Diego State University17, University of Alaska Fairbanks18, Central Queensland University19, University of Louisiana at Lafayette20, International Council for the Exploration of the Sea21, Duke University22, University of Florida23, Auburn University24, University of Adelaide25, Florida International University26, Memorial University of Newfoundland27, University of New South Wales28, University of Washington29, Deakin University30
TL;DR: This paper used a modified Delphi method to solicit applied research questions from academic experts in seascape ecology and then asked respondents to identify priority questions across 9 interrelated research themes using 2 rounds of selection.
Abstract: Seascape ecology, the marine-centric counterpart to landscape ecology, is rapidly emerging as an interdisciplinary and spatially explicit ecological science with relevance to marine management, biodiversity conservation, and restoration. While important progress in this field has been made in the past decade, there has been no coherent prioritisation of key research questions to help set the future research agenda for seascape ecology. We used a 2-stage modified Delphi method to solicit applied research questions from academic experts in seascape ecology and then asked respondents to identify priority questions across 9 interrelated research themes using 2 rounds of selection. We also invited senior management/conservation practitioners to prioritise the same research questions. Analyses highlighted congruence and discrepancies in perceived priorities for applied research. Themes related to both ecological concepts and management practice, and those identified as priorities include seascape change, seascape connectivity, spatial and temporal scale, ecosystem-based management, and emerging technologies and metrics. Highest-priority questions (upper tercile) received 50% agreement between respondent groups, and lowest priorities (lower tercile) received 58% agreement. Across all 3 priority tiers, 36 of the 55 questions were within a ±10% band of agreement. We present the most important applied research questions as determined by the proportion of votes received. For each theme, we provide a synthesis of the research challenges and the potential role of seascape ecology. These priority questions and themes serve as a roadmap for advancing applied seascape ecology during, and beyond, the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030).
40 citations
Cites background from "A Review of Oceanographic Applicati..."
...Increasingly, however, targeted research-led mapping has focussed on capturing ecological patterns that specifically consider species, communities, and biodiversity elements of the seabed and water column (Colbo et al. 2014, Costa et al. 2014, Lacharité & Brown 2019)....
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Australian Institute of Marine Science1, University of Western Australia2, National Oceanography Centre3, Louisiana State University4, University of Technology, Sydney5, Environmental Protection Authority6, Curtin University7, Deakin University8, New South Wales Department of Primary Industries9, Scottish Association for Marine Science10, University of the Highlands and Islands11
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identify and describe operationally-feasible methods to alter adjust the way in which industry ROVs are operated to enhance the scientific value of data that they collect, without significantly impacting scheduling or adding to deployment costs.
Abstract: Remotely-operated vehicles (ROVs) are used extensively by the offshore oil and gas and renewables industries for inspection, maintenance, and repair of their infrastructure. With thousands of subsea structures monitored across the world’s oceans from the shallows to depths greater than 1000 m, there is a great and underutilised opportunity for their scientific use. Through slight modifications of ROV operations, and by augmenting industry workclass ROVs with a range of scientific equipment, industry can fuel scientific discoveries, contribute to an understanding of the impact of artificial structures in our oceans, and collect biotic and abiotic data to support our understanding of how oceans and marine life are changing. Here, we identify and describe operationally-feasible methods to alter adjust the way in which industry ROVs are operated to enhance the scientific value of data that they collect, without significantly impacting scheduling or adding to deployment costs. These include: rapid marine life survey protocols, imaging improvements, the addition of a range of scientific sensors, and collection of biological samples. By partnering with qualified and experienced research scientists, industry can improve the quality of their ROV-derived data, allowing the data to be analysed robustly. Small changes by industry now could provide substantial benefits to scientific research in the long-term and improve the quality of scientific data in existence once the structures require decommissioning. Such changes also have the potential to enhance industry’s environmental stewardship by improving their environmental management and facilitating more informed engagement with a range of external stakeholders, including regulators and the public.
39 citations
References
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Book•
01 Jan 1987
887 citations
Book•
30 Oct 1997
TL;DR: The fundamental principles of underwater sound propagation are described in this paper, which is an authoritative reference for specialists in acoustics, oceanography, marine biology, and related fields, and also encourages a new generation of scientists, engineers and entrepreneurs to apply the modern methods of acoustical physics to probe the unknown sea.
Abstract: Fundamentals of Acoustical Oceanography an important reference for specialists in acoustics, oceanography, marine biology, and related fields. This book also encourages a new generation of scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs to apply the modern methods of acoustical physics to probe the unknown sea. The book is an authoritative, modern text with examples and exercises. It contains techniques to solve the direct problems, solutions of inverse problems, and an extensive bibliography from the earliest use of sound in the sea to present references. The book provides background to measure ocean parameters and processes, find life and objects in the sea, communicate underwater, and survey the boundaries of the sea. Fundamentals of Acoustical Oceanography explains principles of underwater sound propagation, and describes how both actively probing sonars and passively listening hydrophones can reveal what the eye cannot see over vast ranges of the turbid ocean. This book demonstrates how to use acoustical remote sensing, variations in sound transmission, in situ acoustical measurements, and computer and laboratory models to identify the physical and biological parameters and processes in the sea.
660 citations
TL;DR: This review examines the various strategies and methods used to produce benthic habitat maps using acoustic remote sensing techniques, coupled with in situ sampling and concludes that the advent of spatial ecological studies founded on high-resolution environmental data sets will undoubtedly help to examine patterns in community and species distributions.
Abstract: This review examines the various strategies and methods used to produce benthic habitat maps using acoustic remote sensing techniques, coupled with in situ sampling. The applications of three acoustic survey techniques are examined in detail: single-beam acoustic ground discrimination systems, sidescan sonar systems, and multi-beam echo sounders. Over the past decade we have witnessed the nascence of the field of benthic habitat mapping and, on the evidence of the literature reviewed in this paper, have seen a rapid evolution in the level of sophistication in our ability to image and thus map seafloor habitats. As acoustic survey tools have become ever more complex, new methods have been tested to segment, classify and combine these data with biological ground truth sample data. Although the specific methods used to derive habitat maps vary considerably, the review indicates that studies can generally be categorized into one of three over-arching strategies; 1) Abiotic surrogate mapping; 2) Assemble first, predict later (unsupervised classification); 3) Predict first, assemble later (supervised classification). Whilst there is still no widely accepted agreement on the best way to produce benthic habitat maps, all three strategies provide valuable map resources to support management objectives. Whilst there is still considerable work to be done before we can answer many of the outstanding technological, methodological, ecological and theoretical questions that have been raised here, the review concludes that the advent of spatial ecological studies founded on high-resolution environmental data sets will undoubtedly help us to examine patterns in community and species distributions. This is a vital first step in unraveling ecological complexities and thus providing improved spatial information for management of marine systems.
497 citations
01 Mar 2002
TL;DR: In this article, the capability of acoustics to deliver on its potentiality to make a valuable and unique contribution to the measurement of small-scale sediment processes is discussed, as well as the physics underlying the approach, a series of examples illustrating collected data, a discussion on some of the difficulties encountered when applying acoustic and finally a look to the future and possible new developments.
Abstract: Over the past two decades the application of acoustics to the measurement of small-scale sediment processes has been gaining increasing acceptance within the sedimentological community. This has arisen because acoustics has the potential to measure non-intrusively, with high temporal and spatial resolution, profiles of suspended sediment size and concentration, profiles of flow, and the bedform morphology. In the present article we review the capability of acoustics to deliver on its potentiality to make a valuable and unique contribution to the measurement of small-scale sediment processes. The article introduces the reasons for using acoustics, the physics underlying the approach, a series of examples illustrating collected data, a discussion on some of the difficulties encountered when applying acoustics and finally a look to the future and possible new developments.
454 citations