Preliminary backscatter results from the hydrosweep multibeam system

Abstract

The alfred Wegener Institute recently contracted with Atlas Elektronik to upgrade the Hydrosweep multibeam bathymetry system on the polar research vessel POLARSTERN. This upgrade not only increased the swath width of the system from 90 degrees to 120 degrees, but also adds two new capabilities to the system: collection of sidescan sonar data, and the measurement of seafloor backscatter coefficients. The Hydrosweep backscatter software uses an algorithm developEd. by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography to convert the measured electrical energy into acoustic backscatter energy. This conversion includes corrections for the position, slope, and area of the scattering surface. In this paper we present backscatter data from several areas surveyed with the modified Hydrosweep DS multibeam system on the R/V POLARSTERN. These data represent the first results from the Hydrosweep backscatter system