Intercomparison of co-registered seabeam bathymetry, hydrosweep bathymetry, SeaMARC I imagery and submersible observations on the continental slope of the eastern U.S.
A 20 × 20 mile area of the continental slope between Lindenkohl and Hendrickson Canyons and between the water depths of 200 and 2300 meters has been surveyed in sequential field programs. The instruments used include the Seabeam and Hydrosweep multibeam echo-sounders, the SeaMARC I side-looking sonar, towed camera sleds, the manned submersible Alvin and drilling and substrate drilling and coring devices. Contour representations of seafloor relief have been generated along with perspective views obtained from a gridded terrain model. The mode has been illuminated to create the equivalent of a side-looking sonar image for comparison to actual sonar images. The latter have the highest spatial resolution, by at least an order of magnitude. Seabeam and Hydrosweep have remarkable consistency for overlapping and intersecting swaths. Alvin provides visual and sampling ground truth.