Getting to the Bottom of it all.

Some Land Surveyors are just jumping right on in. Getting wet has an all-new meaning, an all-new approach and the data capture is mind blowing.

Bathymetry and Hydrography are terms that we refer to when your topography meets the water. Bathymetry and Hydrography are often used interchangeably. Bathymetric and hydrographic surveys are not the same. Bathymetric surveys being a form of hydrographic survey offer detailed topology of the water bodies bottom surface.

Entire industries are built on and rely on hydrographic surveys. Examples of these concentrations are hydroelectric facilities surveys, dam surveys, harbor surveys, passage surveys, coastal surveys, and general hydrographic surveys for tailing ponds and retention/detention ponds. Knowing that bathymetry is a part of hydrography and features the properties of the water itself, and the characterizes the study and findings impacting adjacent shorelines, measuring intensities of tides, currents, waves and so much more.

What are hydrographic surveys?

Subsurface or underwater surveying, hydrography is a science. Measuring and determining physical characteristics of the bodies of water, and the surrounding lands. Hydrographers measure the depth of water, topographic features of the surrounding shoreline and subsurface. The Hydrographers findings reveal and illuminate understanding of anomalies and elevations hidden beneath the waterline. Benefits include, mapping water depths, hidden anomalies that may cause obstruction, contour of coastline. Strengthening decisions for marine navigation, construction deployments. Impacting many of today's top industries such as oil & gas drilling, dredging, tailing ponds and engineering of water way infrastructure and the list continues to grow.

What are bathymetric surveys?

A concentration of study of the hydrographic surveyor which is used to map out the characteristics of hidden underwater terrain. These findings are used to answer the secrets of the water world. Strems, rivers, ponds and lakes aiding in regulatory determinations such as flood assessments and wetland determinations.

Bathymetric surveyors typically use sensory attached to a survey boat/vessel, or an unmanned remote-controlled vessel (RCV) to conduct the survey. The marine sensory generates electrical signals to measure the subsurface terrain. The boat/vessel moves across the water ether by the captain of that vessel or an auto navigation (ASV) with a mission previous mapped and coordinated for autonomous navigation of the vessels course during the mapping process. The sensory utilizes sound waves generated by transducer submerged underwater. As the soundwaves impact the subterrain, the echo of the impact of that sound wave is identified by a device known as an echosounder. The echosounder then calculates the sound wave has traveled. Each distance measurement being linked to surveying mapping and data collection software using the chosen GNSS or Conventional Surveying methodologies by the Hydrographic Surveyor. The final deliverable involves transferring data captures from the field to office software to draft an elevated 2D or 3D mapping of the subsurface terrain model.

The variables of sensory are very diverse. Many levels of Hydrographic sensory are available. As many as the common offerings in the geospatial world. It will all depend on what data you need to satisfy and how fiscally invested you wish to become to gain that needed data.