Vessel-based portable echosounder system for improved interpretation of Gulf of Maine long term monitoring efforts

Abstract

This proposal will procure a three frequency, broadband, portable vessel-based echosounder system for conducting surveys in and around long-term monitoring sites in the Gulf of Maine. Stationary upward-looking echosounders have been deployed at multiple sites inthis region for the past three years, however as these instruments are fixed on the seafloor, they are unable to fully resolve the spatial variability in physical and biological scattering processes occurring in this region. Having a portable multi-frequency echosounder system will allow the collection of backscatter data at these long term monitoring sites to provide information regarding the spatial (and short-term temporal) variability in backscatter at these sites. This information is necessary to provide the range(s) that the stationary data may be extrapolated out spatially (i.e. the autocorrelation scale of backscattering signals). Two primary advantages of this system are: 1) it is portable (i.e. able to be deployed from a variety of vessels via an instrument well or pole-mount) and 2) it covers a broad range of frequencies (30-70 kHz, 160-240 kHz, 280 # 450 kHz) which will allow for remote identification of various scattering processes (e.g. swimbladdered fish, small (copepods) and large (krill) crustacean zooplankton, suspended sediments, and microstructure).

Document Details

Document Type
DoD Grant Award
Publication Date
Sep 11, 2023
Source ID
N000142312849

Entities

People

  • Joseph Warren

Organizations

  • Office of Naval Research
  • Research Foundation for the State University of New York
  • United States Navy

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Environmental science

Readers

  • Acoustical Oceanography.
  • Marine Ecotoxicology