• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
• /
• v.26 no.2
• /
• pp.52-61
• /
• 2023

The use of ultra-high-resolution (UHR) seismic surveys to preceisly characterize coastal and shallow structures have increased recently. UHR surveys derive a spatial resolution of 3.125 m using a high-frequency source (80 Hz to 1 kHz). A digital streamer system is an essential module for acquiring high-quality UHR seismic data. Localization studies have focused on reducing purchase costs and decreasing maintenance periods. Basic performance verification and application tests of the developed streamer have been successfully carried out; however, a comparative analysis with the existing benchmark model was not conducted. In this study, we characterized data obtained by using a developed streamer and a benchmark model simultaneously. Tamhae 2 and auxiliary equipment of the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources were used to acquire 2D seismic data, which were analyzed from different perspectives. The data obtained using the developed streamer differed in sensitivity from that obtained using benchmark model by frequency band.However, both type of data had a very high level of similarity in the range corresponding to the central frequency band of the seismic source. However, in the low frequency band below 60 Hz, data obtained using the developed streamer showed a lower signal-to-noise ratio than that obtained using the benchmark model.This lower ratio can hinder the quality in data acquisition using low-frequency sound sources such as cluster air guns. Three causes for this difference were, and streamers developed in future will attempt to reflect on these improvements.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
• /
• v.55 no.5
• /
• pp.465-475
• /
• 2022

The seafloor massive sulfide deposits are important mineral resources for base and precious metals, and their ore genesis and metal contents are mainly controlled by wall-rock leaching process and/or magmatic volatile input from the underlying magma chamber. However, the contribution of two different metal sources to the seafloor hydrothermal mineralization significantly varies in diverse geological settings and thus still remains controversial. In this review, mineralogical and geochemical characteristics of SMS deposits from mid-ocean ridges (MORs) and volcanic arcs were investigated to understand the contribution from different metal sources and to suggest future challenges that need to be addressed. As a result, the genetic occurrences of enargite and cubanite, galena and barite indicate the effects of magmatic input and water-rock interaction, respectively. Also, the distributional behaviors of Co, As, and Hg in pyrite and FeS content of sphalerite could be useful empirical indicators to discriminate the significant roles of different metal sources between MOR and Arc settings. To date, as most studies have focused on sulfide samples recovered from the seabed, further studies on magmatic sulfides and sulfate minerals are required to fully understand the genetic history of SMS deposits.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
• /
• v.25 no.1
• /
• pp.1-13
• /
• 2022

For surveying shallow gas reservoirs in the Pohang basin, we proposed a seismic exploration method applicable to the transition zone in which land and marine areas are connected. We designed the seismic acquisition geometry considering both environments. We installed land nodal receivers on the ground and employed vibroseis and airgun sources in both land and marine areas. For seismic exploration in the transition zone, specific acquisition and processing techniques are required to ensure precise matching of reflectors at the boundary between the onshore and offshore regions. To enhance the continuity of reflection events on the seismic section, we performed amplitude and phase corrections with respect to the source types and applied a static correction. Following these processing steps, we obtained a seismic section showing connected reflectors around the boundary in the transition zone. We anticipate that our proposed seismic exploration method can also be used for fault detection in the transition zone.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.273-284
• /
• 2002

The Gravity-Geologic Method (GGM) was implemented for bathymetric determinations in the Drake Passage, Antarctica, using global marine Free-air Gravity Anomalies (FAGA) data sets by Sandwell and Smith (1997) and local echo sounding measurements. Of the 6548 bathymetric sounding measurements, two thirds of these points were used as control depths, while the remaining values were used as checkpoints. A density contrast of 9.0 gm/㎤ was selected based on the checkpoints predictions with changes in the density contrast assumed between the seawater and ocean bottom topographic mass. Control depths from the echo soundings were used to determine regional gravity components that were removed from FAGA to estimate the gravity effects of the bathymetry. These gravity effects were converted to bathymetry by inversion. In particular, a selective merging technique was developed to effectively combine the echo sounding depths with the GGM bathymetiy to enhance high frequency components along the shipborne sounding tracklines. For the rugged bathymetry of the research area, the GGM bathymetry shows correlation coefficients (CC) of 0.91, 0.92, and 0.85 with local shipborne sounding by KORDI, GEODAS, and a global ETOPO5 model, respectively. The enhanced GGM by selective merging shows imploved CCs of 0.948 and 0.954 with GEODAS and Smith & Sandwell (1997)'s predictions with RMS differences of 449.8 and 441.3 meters. The global marine FAGA data sets and other bathymetric models ensure that the GGM can be used in conjunction with shipborne bathymetry from echo sounding to extend the coverage into the unmapped regions, which should generate better results than simply gridding the sparse data or relying upon lower resolution global data sets such as ETOPO5.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
• /
• v.49 no.2
• /
• pp.121-134
• /
• 2016

We characterize the spatial distribution of Cobalt-rich ferromanganese crusts covering the summit and slopes of a seamount in the western Pacific, using acoustic backscatter from multibeam echo sounders (MBES) and seafloor video observation. Based on multibeam bathymetric data, we identify that ~70% of the summit area of this flattopped seamount has slope gradients less than $5^{\circ}$. The histogram of the backscatter intensity data shows a bi-modal distribution, indicating significant variations in seabed hardness. On the one hand, visual inspection of the seafloor using deep-sea camera data exhibits that the steep slope areas with high backscatter are mainly covered by manganese crusts. On the other hand, the visual analyses for the summit reveal that the summit areas with relatively low backscatter are covered by sediments. The other summit areas, however, exhibit high acoustic reflectivity due to coexistence of manganese crusts and sediments. Comparison between seafloor video images and acoustic backscatter intensity suggests that the central summit has relatively flat topography and low backscatter intensity resulting from unconsolidated sediments. In addition, the rim of the summit and the slopes are of high acoustic reflectivity because of manganese crusts and/or bedrock outcrops with little sediments. Therefore, we find a strong correlation between the acoustic backscatter data acquired from sea-surface multibeam survey and the spatial distribution of sediments and manganese crusts. We propose that analyzing acoustic backscatter can be one of practical methods to select optimal minable areas of the ferromanganese crusts from seamounts for future mining.

• The Science & Technology
• /
• v.1 no.4 s.4
• /
• pp.16-22
• /
• 1968

• The Science & Technology
• /
• v.2 no.4 s.8
• /
• pp.43-43
• /
• 1969

• The Science & Technology
• /
• v.9 no.7 s.86
• /
• pp.37-40
• /
• 1976

• The Science & Technology
• /
• v.14 no.7 s.146
• /
• pp.33-35
• /
• 1981

• Bulletin of the Society of Naval Architects of Korea
• /
• v.6 no.1
• /
• pp.69-82
• /
• 1969