Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology Commons^™

Next Edition Of Iho S-57 (Edition 4): Much More Than Encs, Lee Alexander, Michael Brown, Barrie Greenslade

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

The primary goal for the next edition of S-57 (Edition 4) is to support a greater variety of hydrographic-related digital data sources, products, and customers. This includes matrix and raster data, 3-D and time-varying data (x, y, z, and time), and new applications that go beyond the scope of traditional hydrography (e.g., high-density bathymetry, seafloor classification, marine GIS). It will also enable the use of web-based services for data discovery, browsing, query, analysis, and transfer. S-57 Edition 4.0 will not be an incremental revision of Edition 3.1. Edition 4 will be a new standard that includes both additional content and …

The Design Of An Uncertainty Model For The Tidal Constituent And Residual Interpolation (Tcari) Method For Tidal Correction Of Bathymetric Data, Rick Brennan, Kurt Hess, Lloyd C. Huff, Steve Gill

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

Recent advances in processing multibeam sonar data brought about by the Combined Uncertainty and Bathymetric Estimator (CUBE) [1] have demonstrated the value of identifying and tracking survey uncertainties. Most of these uncertainties were outlined in Hare, Godin, and Mayer uncertainty model developed in 1995 [2]. That report identified the uncertainties in the various electronic systems used to acquire the bathymetric data. However, one of the largest contributors to the overall error budge t in a near coastal hydrographic survey is that contributed by water level uncertainty. As the ocean mapping industry pushes for ever finer spatial details in its data, …

Coral Reef Electronic Chart Initiative, Protecting Corals, Saving Ships, Lee Alexander, Kathryn L. Ries

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

The Office of Coast Survey, NOAA is conducting a pilot project in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary to convert existing coral, marine protected areas (MPA) and other marine GIS information into a format suitable for use with shipboard Electronic Chart Display and Information Systems (ECDIS). Specifically, existing data will be converted into Marine Information Objects (MIOs) conforming to IHO S-57 data standards that become a supplemental information layer to be used with Electronic Navigational Charts (ENC) in ECDIS. The project goal is to strengthen marine resource conservation by bringing critical coral, MPA, and other environmental protection-related information to the …

Empirical Analysis Of Aerial Camera Filters For Shoreline Mapping, Christopher Parrish, Maryellen Sault, Stephen A. White, Jon Sellars

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

Accurate, up-to-date national shoreline is critical in defining the territorial limits of the Unites States, updating nautical charts, and managing coastal resources. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) delineates the interpreted shoreline photogrammetrically using tide-coordinated stereo photography acquired with black-and-white infrared emulsion. In this paper, we present the results of a two-phased study aimed at quantifying the effect of camera filter selection on the interpreted shoreline when utilizing this method of shoreline mapping.

Geocoder: An Efficient Backscatter Map Constructor, Luciano E. Fonseca, Brian R. Calder

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

The acoustic backscatter acquired by multibeam and sidescan sonars carries important information about the seafloor morphology and physical properties, providing valuable data to aid the difficult task of seafloor characterization, and important auxiliary information for a bathymetric survey. One necessary step towards this characterization is the assemblage of more consistent and more accurate mosaics of acoustic backscatter. For that, it is necessary to radiometrically correct the backscatter intensities registered by these sonars, to geometrically correct and position each acoustic sample in a projection coordinate system and to interpolate properly the intensity values into a final backscatter map. Geocoder is a …

Investigation Of Bottom Fishing Impacts On Benthic Structure Using Multibeam Sonar, Sidescan And Video, Mashkoor A. Malik, Larry A. Mayer

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

Bottom fishing gear is known to alter benthic structure, however changes in the shape of the sea floor are often too subtle to be detected by acoustic remote sensing. Nonetheless, long linear features were observed during a recent high-resolution multibeam sonar survey of Jeffreys Ledge, a prominent fishing ground in Gulf of Maine, located about 50 km from Portsmouth, NH. These marks, which have a relief of only few centimeters, are presumed to be caused by bottom dredging gear used in the area for scallop and clam fisheries. The extraction of these small features from a noisy data set (including …

Multi-Dimensional, Multi-National, Multi-Faceted Hydrographic Training: The Nippon Foundation Gebco Training Program At The University Of New Hampshire, Dave Monahan, Clive Angwenyi, Hugo Montoro, Taisei Morishita, Abubakar Mustapha, Walter Reynoso Peralta, Shereen Sharma, Srinivas Karlapati

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

Hydrographic training entered a new era when students arrived at the University of New Hampshire in August of 2004 to form the first class of the Nippon Foundation GEBCO (General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans) training program. Born out of the need to replenish GEBCO’s aging human material, and of the desire to spread deep ocean mapping capabilities more widely throughout the world, the program attracted applications from 57 students in over thirty countries. The seven selected each had post graduate training and several years experience, but differed in that three were hydrographers, two geologists and two oceanographers. Classes planned …

Panoramic Images For Situational Awareness In A 3d Chart-Of-The-Future Display, Matthew D. Plumlee, Colin Ware, Roland J. Arsenault, Rick Brennan

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

Many early charts featured sketches of the coastline, providing a good picture of what the shore looked like from the bridge of a ship. These helped the mariner to distinguish one port from another during an approach and establish their rough position within that approach. More recent experimental 3D chart interfaces have incorporated 3D models of land topography and man-made structures to perform the same function. However, topography is typically captured from the air, by means of stereophotogrammetry or lidar and fails to present a good representation of what is seen from a vessel’s bridge. We have been conducting an …

U.S. Law Of The Sea Cruise To Map The Foot Of The Slope And 2500-M Isobath Of The U.S. Arctic Ocean Margin. Cruise Report For 2004, Larry A. Mayer

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

U.S. Law of the Sea cruise to map the foot of the slope and 2500-m isobath of the US Arctic Ocean margin

CRUISES HE-0405

October 6 to October 26, 2004

Nome, AK to Barrow, AK

On The Optimization Of Visualizations Of Complex Phenomena, Donald H. House, Althea D. Bair, Colin Ware

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

The problem of perceptually optimizing complex visualizations is a difficult one, involving perceptual as well as aesthetic issues. In our experience, controlled experiments are quite limited in their ability to uncover interrelationships among visualization parameters, and thus may not be the most useful way to develop rules-of-thumb or theory to guide the production of high-quality visualizations. In this paper, we propose a new experimental approach to optimizing visualization quality that integrates some of the strong points of controlled experiments with methods more suited to investigating complex highly-coupled phenomena. We use human-in-the-loop experiments to search through visualization parameter space, generating large …

Mapping Near-Surface Gas With Acoustic Remote Sensing Methods, Examples From Eel River Margin, Ca And Skjalfandi Bay, Iceland, Luciano E. Fonseca, Larry A. Mayer

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

No abstract provided.

New Views Of The Gulf Of Alaska Margin Mapped For Unclos Applications, Larry A. Mayer, James V. Gardner, Andy Armstrong, Brian R. Calder, Mashkoor A. Malik, Clive Angwenyi, Srinivas Karlapati, Hugo Montoro, Taisei Morishita, Abubakar Mustapha

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

No abstract provided.

Summertime Ozone At Mount Washington: Meteorological Controls At The Highest Peak In The Northeast, E V. Fischer, R. Talbot, Jack E. Dibb

Earth Sciences

This study examined the synoptic and regional-scale meteorological controls on summertime O₃ at Mount Washington, the highest peak (1910 m) in the northeastern United States. Analysis of air mass transport to Mount Washington was conducted for the summers of 1998–2003 using backward trajectories. Distinct patterns in air mass history were revealed using this approach that helped explain extreme variations in O₃ mixing ratios. Most enhanced (≥90th percentile) and depleted (≤10th percentile) O₃ events were short-lived and spread out over the summer months. Enhanced O₃ events at Mount Washington were generally associated with westerly transport, while depleted …

Snow Accumulation, Surface Height Change, And Firn Densification At Summit, Greenland: Insights From 2 Years Of In Situ Observation, Jack E. Dibb, Mark Fahnestock

Earth Sciences

Weekly measurements of surface height change were made at an accumulation forest of 100 stakes at Summit, Greenland, over a 2-year period (17 August 2000 to 8 August 2002). On average, the surface height relative to the stakes increased 64 (±4.8) cm in the first year and 65 (±5.3) cm in the second, identical to the average (65 ± 4.5 cm yr⁻¹) previously reported for the period 1991–1995 in a similar forest 28 km to the southwest. The continuous 2-year data set indicates that the rate of surface rise was not constant, with the summers of 2001 and …

U.S. Law Of The Sea Cruise To Map The Foot Of The Slope And 2500-M Isobath Of The Northeast Us Atlantic Continental Margin: Legs 1, 2 And 3. Cruise Report, James V. Gardner

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

U.S. Law of the Sea cruise to map the foot of the slope and 2500-m isobath of the Northeast US Atlantic continental margin: Legs 1,2 and 3

CRUISES H04-1, 2 and 3

August 23, to November 30, 2004

Gulfport, MS to Norfolk, VA

Deep-Sea Image Processing, Yuri Rzhanov, Larry A. Mayer, D J. Fornari

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

High-resolution seafloor mapping often requires optical methods of sensing, to confirm interpretations made from sonar data. Optical digital imagery of seafloor sites can now provide very high resolution and also provides additional cues, such as color information for sediments, biota and divers rock types. During the cruise AT11-7 of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) vessel R/V Atlantis (February 2004, East Pacific Rise) visual imagery was acquired from three sources: (1) a digital still down-looking camera mounted on the submersible Alvin, (2) observer-operated 1-and 3-chip video cameras with tilt and pan capabilities mounted on the front of Alvin, and (3) …

Variable Bandwidth Filter For Multibeam Echo-Sounding Bottom Detection, Barbara J. Kraft, Christian De Moustier

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

The accuracy of a seafloor map derived from multibeam swath bathymetry depends first and foremost on the quality of the bottom detection process that yields estimates of the arrival time and angle of bottom echoes received in each beam. Filtering of each beam with a fixed bandwidth filter, with the bandwidth based on the length of the transmitted pulse, reduces the error associated with the time-angle estimates. However, filters of this type can not be optimal over the wide range of operational environments encountered. Better results are obtained with a processing scheme that varies the filter bandwidth across the swath …

The Next Edition Of Iho-S-57 (4.0): A Primer, Lee Alexander

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) is an intergovernmental consultative and technical organization that was established in 1921 to support the safety of navigation and the protection of the marine environment. IHO Special Publication 57 (IHO S-57) is the IHO Transfer Standard for Digital Hydrographic Data. It is the standard to be used for the exchange of digital hydrographic data between hydrographic offices (HOs), and for the distribution of hydrographic data to manufacturers, mariners and other data users (e.g., GIS). It was developed so that the transfer all forms of hydrographic data would take place in a consistent and uniform manner. …

Ship-Based Nitric Acid Measurements In The Gulf Of Maine During New England Air Quality Study 2002, Jack E. Dibb, Eric Scheuer, Sallie I. Whitlow, Marcy Vozzella, Eric Williams, Brian M. Lerner

Earth Sciences

Gas phase nitric acid (HNO₃) was measured at 5-min resolution on board the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) research vessel Ronald H. Brown during the second leg (29 July to 10 August) of the New England Air Quality Study (NEAQS) 2002 cruise. A primary objective of the cruise was to improve understanding of the oxidation of NO_x in, and removal of the oxidation products from, the polluted marine boundary layer east of northeastern North America. For the first 9 days of this leg the ship remained north of Cape Cod, and the cruise track did not …

Three-Dimensional Simulations Of Inorganic Aerosol Distributions In East Asia During Spring 2001, Youhua Tang, Gregory R. Carmichael, John H. Seinfeld, Donald Dabdub, Rodney J. Weber, B J. Huebert, A D. Clarke, Sergio A. Guazzotti, David A. Sodeman, Kimberly A. Prather, Itsushi Uno, Jung -Hun Woo, James J. Yienger, David G. Streets, Patricia K. Quinn, James E. Johnson, Chul-Han Song, Vicki H. Grassian, Adrian Sandu, R. Talbot, Jack E. Dibb

Earth Sciences

In this paper, aerosol composition and size distributions in east Asia are simulated using a comprehensive chemical transport model. Three-dimensional aerosol simulations for the TRACE-P and ACE-Asia periods are performed and used to help interpret actual observations. The regional chemical transport model, STEM-2K3, which includes the on-line gas-aerosol thermodynamic module SCAPE II, and explicitly considers chemical aging of dust, is used in the analysis. The model is found to represent many of the important observed features. The Asian outflow during March and April of 2001 is heavily polluted with high aerosol loadings. Under conditions of low dust loading, SO_{2 …}

A Major Regional Air Pollution Event In The Northeastern United States Caused By Extensive Forest Fires In Quebec, Canada, Linsey J. Debell, Jack E. Dibb, R. Talbot, J W. Munger, E V. Fischer, Steve Frolking

Earth Sciences

During early July 2002, wildfires burned ∼1 × 10⁶ ha of forest in Quebec, Canada. The resultant smoke plume was seen in satellite images blanketing the U.S. east coast. Concurrently, extremely high CO mixing ratios were observed at the Atmospheric Investigation, Regional Modeling, Analysis and Prediction (AIRMAP) network sites in New Hampshire and at the Harvard Forest Environmental Measurement Site (HFEMS) in Massachusetts. The CO enhancements were on the order of 525–1025 ppbv above low mixing ratio conditions on surrounding days. A biomass burning source for the event was confirmed by concomitant enhancements in aerosol K⁺, NH …

Measurement Of In Situ Acoustic Properties For The Onr Geoclutter Program, Larry A. Mayer, Barbara J. Kraft, Luciano E. Fonseca

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

No abstract provided.

A Comparison Of Similar Aerosol Measurements Made On The Nasa P3-B, Dc-8, And Nsf C-130 Aircraft During Trace-P And Ace-Asia, K G. Moore, A D. Clarke, V Kapustin, Cameron Mcnaughton, B E. Anderson, E L. Winstead, R J. Weber, Y Ma, Y N. Lee, R. Talbot, Jack E. Dibb, T Anderson, S Dougherty, D Covert, D Rogers

Earth Sciences

Two major aircraft experiments occurred off the Pacific coast of Asia during spring 2001: the NASA sponsored Transport and Chemical Evolution over the Pacific (TRACE-P) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) sponsored Aerosol Characterization Experiment-Asia (ACE-Asia). Both experiments studied emissions from the Asian continent (biomass burning, urban/industrial pollution, and dust). TRACE-P focused on trace gases and aerosol during March/April and was based primarily in Hong Kong and Yokota Air Force Base, Japan, and involved two aircraft: the NASA DC-8 and the NASA P3-B. ACE-Asia focused on aerosol and radiation during April/May and was based in Iwakuni Marine Corps Air Station, …

Carbonyl Sulfide And Carbon Disulfide: Large-Scale Distributions Over The Western Pacific And Emissions From Asia During Trace-P, Nicola J. Blake, David G. Streets, Jung -Hun Woo, Isobel J. Simpson, Jonathan Green, Simone Meinardi, Kazuyuki Kita, E L. Atlas, H Fuelberg, Glen Sachse, Melody A. Avery, S Vay, R. Talbot, Jack E. Dibb, A R. Bandy, D C. Thornton, F Sherwood Rowland, D R. Blake

Earth Sciences

An extensive set of carbonyl sulfide (OCS) and carbon disulfide (CS₂) observations were made as part of the NASA Transport and Chemical Evolution over the Pacific (TRACE-P) project, which took place in the early spring 2001. TRACE-P sampling focused on the western Pacific region but in total included the geographic region 110°E to 290°E longitude, 5°N to 50°N latitude, and 0–12 km altitude. Substantial OCS and CS₂ enhancements were observed for a great many air masses of Chinese and Japanese origin during TRACE-P. Over the western Pacific, mean mixing ratios of long-lived OCS and shorter-lived CS_{2 …}

Intercomparisons Of Airborne Measurements Of Aerosol Ionic Chemical Composition During Trace-P And Ace-Asia, Y Ma, R J. Weber, K Maxwell-Meier, D A. Orsini, Y-N Lee, B J. Huebert, S G. Howell, T H. Bertram, R. Talbot, Jack E. Dibb, Eric Scheuer

Earth Sciences

As part of the two field studies, Transport and Chemical Evolution over the Pacific (TRACE-P) and the Asian Aerosol Characterization Experiment (ACE-Asia), the inorganic chemical composition of tropospheric aerosols was measured over the western Pacific from three separate aircraft using various methods. Comparisons are made between the rapid online techniques of the particle into liquid sampler (PILS) for measurement of a suite of fine particle a mist chamber/ion chromatograph (MC/IC) measurement of fine sulfate, and the longer time-integrated filter and micro-orifice impactor (MOI) measurements. Comparisons between identical PILS on two separate aircraft flying in formation showed that they were highly …

Investigations For Ergonomic Presentation Of Ais Symbols For Ecdis, Florian Motz, Heino Widdel, Parry Oei, Scott Mackinnon, Lee Alexander

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

Empirical investigations were carried out in a research project for the German Federal Ministry of Transport, Building, and Housing to evaluate the presentation of AIS target information on ECDIS. The investigations were performed at three international simulation centres. The features, colour and fillingjsize of AIS symbols, as well as the influence of the ECDIS display category on the detection of AIS targets were the main issues of the investigations. Results show that blue (5-52 colour token RE5BL) is the most suitable colour of the tested colours for the presentation of AIS targets under all ambient light conditions on the tested …

Enc Distribution Options Based On Wend, Lee Alexander

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

The electronic chart is a new technology capable of continuously determining a vessel's position in relation to land, charted objects, aids-to-navigation, and unseen hazards. As a real-time navigation system, electronic charting provides significant benefits in terms of improvements in navigation safety, efficiency of maritime transportation, and marine environmental protection.

In terms of system components, features and functional capability, there are two basic types of electronic charts. The most advanced form is an Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDIS). All other types can be regarded, generically, as Electronic Chart Systems (ECS). For an electronic chart to be considered an ECDIS, …

Haptic Gdraw: A Fun And Easy To Use 3d Haptically Enhanced Sculpting Program, Rick Komerska, Colin Ware

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

We have developed a simple haptically-enhanced 3D sculpting application which utilizes Hermite spline-based primitives as building blocks to construct more complex solid models. To accomplish this, we have constructed a VR work environment which is intuitive and whose control affordances are made clear through the use of graspable handles. Haptics is used to support handle selection and provide physical constraints on handle movements consistent with their visual affordances. Our goal is to demonstrate how relatively simple haptic force constraints can combine with a visually intuitive and compelling environment to enable a program that is fun and easy to use.

A 700 Year Record Of Southern Hemisphere Extratropical Climate Variability, Paul A. Mayewski, Kirk A. Maasch, James W.C. White, Eric J. Steig, E A. Meyerson, Ian D. Goodwin, Vin Morgan, Tas D. Van Ommen, Mark Aj Curran, Joseph M. Souney Jr, K Kreutz

All Materials

Annually dated ice cores from West and East Antarctica provide proxies for past changes in atmospheric circulation over Antarctica and portions of the Southern Ocean, temperature in coastal West and East Antarctica, and the frequency of South Polar penetration of El Niño events. During the period AD 1700–1850, atmospheric circulation over the Antarctic and at least portions of the Southern Hemisphere underwent a mode switch departing from the out-of-phase alternation of multi-decadal long phases of EOF1 and EOF2 modes of the 850 hPa field over the Southern Hemisphere (as defined in the recent record by Thompson and Wallace, 2000; Thompson …

Visualizing The Geology Of Lake Trout Spawning Sites: Northern Lake Michigan, Peter Dartnell, Peter Barnes, James V. Gardner, Kristen Lee

Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping

Geologists and biologists are working together to understand the links between lake floor geology (composition and shape) and the distribution of lake trout throughout their life cycle. Lake floor geology is one of the main factors determining where lake trout spawn, feed, and hide. In support of ongoing research to study Lake Michigan trout habitats, the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers mapped the morphology of principle lake trout spawning sites. Using the Army Corps of Engineer's SHOALS airborne lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) system we mapped six regions in Northern Lake Michigan in …