• Journal of the Institute of Electronics and Information Engineers
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• v.54 no.2
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• pp.38-43
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• 2017

Many studies about generating images of seabed using active sonar have been carried out but image resolution enhancement is still an important problem. Many methods have been proposed to improve sonar resolution and the approach using narrow beam width is commonly and widely applied to enhance azimuth resolution. Unfortunately, this has technical limitations to reduce the beam width. Therefore, signal processing techniques are essential to achieving higher azimuth resolution when an array with conventional beam width is employed. This paper proposes a new approach that utilizes overlapped beams to obtain higher resolution.

• The Journal of the Acoustical Society of Korea
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.95-103
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• 2013

An underwater acoustic (UWA) communication in shallow water is strongly affected by the water surface and the seabed acoustical properties. Every reflected signal to receiver experiences a time-variant scattering in sea surface roughness and a grazing-angle-dependent reflection loss in bottom. Consequently, the performance of UWA communication systems is degraded, and high-speed digital communication is disrupted. If there is a dominant signal path such as a direct path, the received signal is modeled statistically as Rice fading but if not, it is modeled as Rayleigh fading. However, it has been known to be very difficult to reproduce the statistical estimation by real experimental evaluation in the sea. To give an insight for this scattering and grazing-angle-dependent bottom reflection loss effect in UWA communication, authors conduct experiments to quantify these effects. The image is transmitted using binary frequency shift keying (BFSK) modulation. The quality of the received image is shown to be affected by water surface scattering and grazing-angle-dependent bottom reflection loss. The analysis is based on the transmitter to receiver range and the receiver depth dependent image quality and bit error rate (BER). The results show that the received image quality is highly dependent on the transmitter-receiver range and receiver depth which characterizes the channel coherence bandwidth.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.199-211
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• 1995

The deep sea camera system could render it possible to obtain the detailed information of the nodule distribution, but difficult to estimate nodule abundance quantitatively. In order to estimate nodule abundance quantitatively from deep seabed photographs, the nodule abundance equation was derived from the box core data obtained in KODOS area(long.: $154^{\circ}{\sim}151^{\circ}W$, lat.: $9^{\circ}{\sim}12^{\circ}N$) during two survey cruises carried out in 1989 and 1990. The regression equation derived by considering extent of burial of nodule to Handa's equation compensates for the abundance error attributable to partial burial of some nodules by sediments. An average long axis and average extent of burial of nodules in photographed area are determined according to the surface textures of nodules, and nodule coverage is calculated by the image analysis method. Average nodule abundance estimated from seabed photographs by using the equation is approximately 92% of the actual average abundance in KODOS area. The measured sampling points by box core or free fall grab are in general very sparse and hence nodule abundance distribution should be interpolated and extrapolated from measured data to uncharacterized areas. The another goal of this study is to depict continuous distribution of nodule abundance in KODOS area by using PC-version of geostatistical model in which several stages are systematically proceeded. Geostatistics was used to analyse spatial structure and distribution of regionalized variable(nodule abundance) within sets of real data. In order to investigate the spatial structure of nodule abundance in KODOS area, experimental variograms were calculated and fitted to a spherical models in isotropy and anisotropy, respectively. The spherical structure models were used to map out distribution of the nodule abundance for isotropic and anisotropic models by using the kriging method. The result from anisotropic model is much more reliable than one of isotropic model. Distribution map of nodule abundance produced by PC-version of geostatistical model indicates that approximately 40% of KODOS area is considered to be promising area(nodule abundance > $5kg/m^2$) for mining in case of anisotropy.

• 한국지구물리탐사학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2008.10a
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• pp.207-212
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• 2008

Bathymetry, side scan sonar, and magnetic survey data for the summit area of Dokdo obtained by Korea Ocean Research & Development Institute in 1999, 2004, and 2007 were analyzed to investigate the geophysical characteristics of the summit. Bathymetry and topographic data for the summit of Dokdo show uneven seabed and irregular undulations from costal line to -90 m in water depth, indicating the effects of partial erosions and taluses. The stepped slope in the bathymetry is supposed to be a coastal terrace suggesting repetition of transgressions and regressions in the Quaternary. The bathymetry and the side scan sonar data show a small crater, assumed to be formed by post volcanisms, at depth of $-100\;{\sim}\;-120\;m$ in the northeastern and the northwestern parts of the survey area. Except some areas with shallow sand sedimentary deposits, there are rocky seafloor and lack of sediments in the side scan sonar images of the survey area, dominantly. The analytic signal of the magnetic anomaly coincides with other geophysical results regarding to the location of the residual crater. The geophysical constraints of the summit of Dokdo propose that the islets and the rocky seabed elongated northeastward and northwestward from the islets might be the southern crater of the Dokdo volcano.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.280-285
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• 2008

Manganese nodule abundance estimated based on operation of a Free Fall Grab(FFG) needs to be corrected to make up for its incomplete recovery of nodule, because FFGs can not recover all the nodules distributed on seabed. The correction factor for nodule abundance was proposed as 1.29 and 1.13 in 1994 and 2002, respectively, mainly based on the analyses of seabed images. In this study we collected manganese nodules using both FFG and Box Corer(BC) at same stations to examine the accuracy of the previous correction factors. It was found that the nodule recovery of the BC was 1.4 times greater than that of the FFG at the same sampling station, suggesting the necessity of re-evaluation of the previously proposed correction factor for FFG. More extensive sampling and improvement of image analysis method are required to improve the precision of nodule abundance correction factor for FFG.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.192-198
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• 2009

Side scan sonar and SBP (sub-bottom profiler) play a very important role in the survey for seafloor imaging and sub-bottom profiling. In this study, we have acquired side scan sonar and SBP data from the artificial reef area. We applied digital image processing techniques to side scan sonar data in order to improve an image quality. For the enhancement of data quality and image resolution, we applied the typical seismic data processing sequence including gain recovery, muting, spectrum analysis, predictive deconvolution, migration to SBP data. We could easily estimate if artificial reef structures were settled properly and their distribution on the seafloor from the integrated interpretation of side scan sonar and SBP data. From the sampling analysis of seabed sediments, texture filtering of side scan sonar data and SBP data interpretation, we could evaluate the sediment type, distribution and thickness of seafloor sediments in detail.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.50 no.6
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• pp.477-486
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• 2017

In this study, we analyze precise seabed geomorphology and conditions for comparing the nearshore areas of the Dongdo(East Island) and the Seodo(West Island) using detailed bathymetry data and seafloor backscattering images, in Dokdo, the East Sea. We have been obtained the detailed bathymetry data and the seafloor backscattering data. The survey range is about $250m{\times}250m$ including land of islets to the nearshore areas of the southern part of the Dongdo and the Seodo. As a result of bathymetry survey, the southern area of the Dongdo(~50 m) is deeper than the Seodo(~30 m) in the water depth. The survey areas are consist of extended bedrocks from land of the Dongdo and the Seodo. The underwater rock region of the Seodo is larger than the Dongdo. In spite of similar extended rocks features from islets, there are some distinctive seabed characteristics between the southern nearshore areas of the Dongdo and the Seodo. The Talus-shaped seafloor environment formed by gravel and underwater rocks originating from the land of the Dongdo is up to about 15 m depth. And the boundary line of between extended bedrocks and seabottom is unclear in the southern nearshore of the Dongdo. On the other hand, the southern coast of the Seodo is characterized by relatively large scale underwater rocks and evenly distributed sediments, which clearly distinguish the boundary of between extended bedrocks and seafloor. This is because the tuff layers exposed to the coastal cliffs of the Dongdo are weak against weathering and erosion. It is considered that there are more influences of the clastic sediments carried from the land of the Dongdo compared with the Seodo. Particularly, the land of the Dongdo has been undergoing construction activities. And also a highly unstable ground such as faults, joints and cracks appears in the Dongdo. In previous study, there are dissimilar features of the massive tuff breccia formations of the Dongdo and the Seodo. These conditions are thought to have influenced the different seabed characteristics in the southern nearshore areas of the Dongdo and the Seodo.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.8-17
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• 2023

Various sources, such as wind, waves, ships, and gas leaks from the seafloor, forms bubbles in the ocean. Underwater bubbles cause signal scattering, considerably affecting acoustic measurements. This characteristic of bubbles is used to block underwater noise by attenuating the intensity of the propagated signal. Recently, researchers have been studying the large-scale release of methane gas as bubble plumes from the seabed. Understanding the physical properties and distribution of bubble plumes is crucial for studying the relation between leaked methane gas and climate change. Therefore, a water tank experiment was conducted to estimate the distribution of bubble plumes using seismic imaging techniques and acoustic signals obtained from artificially generated bubbles using a bubble generator. Reverse time migration was applied to image the bubble plumes while the acquired acoustic envelope signal was used to effectively estimate bubble distribution. Imaging results were compared with optical camera images to verify the estimated bubble distribution. The water tank experiment confirmed that the proposed system could successfully image the distribution of bubble plumes using reverse time migration and the envelope signal. The experiment showed that the scattering signal of artificial bubble plumes can be used for seismic imaging.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.81-95
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• 2015

The permeability behavior of Ariake clays has been investigated by constant rate of strain (CRS) consolidation tests with vertical or radial drainage. Three types of Ariake clays, namely undisturbed Ariake clay samples from the Saga plain, Japan (aged Ariake clay), clay deposit in shallow seabed of the Ariake Sea (young Ariake clay) and reconstituted Ariake clay samples using the soil sampled from the Saga plain, were tested. The test results indicate that the deduced permeability in the horizontal direction ($k_h$) is generally larger than that in the vertical direction ($k_v$). Under odometer condition, the permeability ratio ($k_h/k_v$) increases with the vertical strain. It is also found that the development of the permeability anisotropy is influenced by the inter-particle bonds and clay content of the sample. The aged Ariake clay has stronger initial inter-particle bonds than the young and reconstituted Ariake clays, resulting in slower increase of $k_h/k_v$ with the vertical strain. The young Ariake clay has higher clay content than the reconstituted Ariake clay, resulting in higher values of $k_h/k_v$. The microstructure of the samples before and after the consolidation test has been examined qualitatively by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image and semi-quantitatively by mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) tests. The SEM images indicate that there are more cut edges of platy clay particles on a vertical plane (with respect to the deposition direction) and there are more faces of platy clay particles on a horizontal plane. This tendency increases with the increase of one-dimensional (1D) deformation. MIP test results show that using a sample with a larger vertical surface area has a larger cumulative intruded pore volume, i.e., mercury can be intruded into the sample more easily from the horizontal direction (vertical plane) under the same pressure. Therefore, the permeability anisotropy of Ariake clays is the result of the anisotropic microstructure of the clay samples.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.54 no.6
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• pp.717-731
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• 2021

We analyzed the characteristics of the habitat environment for the Seonam study area in Ulsan, the southern shore of the East Sea using bathymetry and seafloor environment data. The depth of the study area ranges from about 0 m to 23 m. In the west of the study area, the water depth is shallow with a gentle slope, and the water depth becomes deeper with a steep slope in the east. Due to the right-lateral strike-slip faults located in the continental margin of the East Sea, the fracture surfaces of the seabed rocks are mainly in the N-S direction, which is similar to the direction of the strike faults. Three seafloor types (conglomeratic-grained sandy, coasre-graiend sandy, fine-grained sandy) and rocky bottom area have been classified according to the analyses of the bathymerty, seafloor image, and surface sediment data. The rocky bottom areas are mainly distributed around Seaoam and in the northern and southern coastal area. But the intermediate zone between Seonam and coastal area has no rocky bottom. This intermediate area is expected to have active sedimentation as seawater way. The sandy sediments are widely distributed throughout the study area. Underwater images and UAV images show that Cnidarians, Brachiopods, Mollusks are mostly dominant in the shallow habitat and various Nacellidae, Mytilidae live on the intertidal zone around Seonam. Annelida and Arthropod are dominant in the sandy sediments. The distribution of marine organism in the study area might be greatly influenced by the seafloor type, the composition and particle size distribution of the seafloor sediments. The analysis of habitat environment mapping with bathymetry, seafloor data and underwater images is supposed to contribute to the study of the structure and function of marine ecosystem.