LDEOInstrument Lab 1

1
Seafloor Sounding in Polar and Remote Regions
(SSPARR) Concept

• Fulfills need for seafloor depth measurements in
  areas not visited by ships, such as
• Arctic Ocean
• Southern Ocean
• Southern Pacific and Indian Oceans
• NSF funded prototype
• SSPARR buoy is an expendable device, deployable
  in open ocean or ice with target 5 year lifespan
• Modular components can be integrated with other
  buoys
• Expandable to use as an aid to navigation for
  under-ice vehicles

2
Modular System Concept
3
Seafloor Sounding in Polar and Remote Regions
(SSPARR)

• Buoy Control/Telemetry Module
• Iridium Short Burst Data
• Data Acquisition/Archiving Control Sys.
• May be floating or through-ice
• Electromechanical Tether
• Oil-filled hydraulic hose protects from ice
  damage
• Integral electrical conductors
• Depth Sounder Module
• Nominal 20m depth to reduce ice damage, surface
  bubbles, cavitation
• Internal power supply for 5 year lifetime
• Energy output dependent on expected seafloor depth

4
Preliminary Data Sample
5
Detected Bottom
Moving Average First Difference Bottom Detection
Algorithm of TracEd System, Dijkstra, S.J.,
Software Tools Developed for Seafloor
Classification, PhD Dissertation, University of
New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB Canada, November
1999
ITC 3013 Transducer 197dB Source Level 2150m
Water Depth
6
Measured Transducer Characteristics
7
Contacts

• Bob Anderson, SAIC andersonrm_at_saic.com
• Dale Chayes, LDEO dale_at_ldeo.columbia.edu
• Mark Rognstad, HMRG/UH markr_at_soest.hawaii.edu
• Larry Mayer, UNH larry.mayer_at_unh.edu