Speedy scanning
'We created our map using a sonar technique called "swath bathymetry",' explains Jenny Collier from Imperial College London. 'This uses high-frequency chirps or squeaks to bounce sound off the seabed, which a computer then interprets into an image. It's similar to the echolocation that bats and dolphins use to navigate their way around.'
The technique allows scientists to scan a whole strip, or 'swath', of the seabed from a single location, making it a speedy way to map the sea floor.
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The silver and black cylinder shown here is a key part of the sonar equipment. The black band running around its middle emits the high-frequency sounds that let scientists map the seabed.
Image: Sanjeev Gupta and Jenny Collier |
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