Explaining Hydrographic Surveys

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EXPLAINING HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEYS
VICTOR OLERSKIY Member of the Board of Directors
at Russian Fishery LLC
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Explaining
Hydrographic Surveys A hydrographic survey is the
process of mapping, measuring and describing
features that affect marine activities, including
navigation, offshore drilling and exploration,
marine construction and other related areas. The
term is often used synonymously with maritime
cartography.
Victor Olerskiy
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Collecting Hydrographical Data The rules under
which hydro- graphical data is collected vary,
as they are dependent on the acceptance
authority. Increas- ingly, data collection is
carried out by sophisticated electron- ics
using shallow water sensor systems, often with
the aid of aircraft, combined with more
traditional echo sounding or use of a sounding
line.
Crowdsourcing In recent years, crowdsourcing has
become more widespread in the collection of
hydro- graphical data. Projects such as ARGUS
and OpenSeaMap send out volunteer vessels to
record data on depth, time and position using
standard instruments of navigation, re- laying
that data to a server af- ter it has been
post-processed to account for corrections such
as tidal movements and speed of sound. This
helps save on costs and provides a continu- ous
survey for more accurate, recent data.
Victor Olerskiy
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Victor Olerskiy
Hydrographic surveys are used in the creation of
nautical charts for marine navigation. Learn more
about nautical charts by visiting the blog of
Victor Olerskiy.