Accession Number:

ADA455132

Title:

Seafloor Roughness, Sediment Grain Size, and Temporal Stability

Descriptive Note:

Conference paper

Corporate Author:

NAVAL RESEARCH LAB STENNIS SPACE CENTER MS SEAFLOOR SCIENCES DIRECTORATE

Personal Author(s):

• Briggs, Kevin B.
• Lyons, Anthony P.
• Pouliquen, Eric
• Mayer, Larry A.
• Richardson, Michael D.

Report Date:

2005-07-01

Pagination or Media Count:

9.0

Abstract:

Measurement of seafloor microtopography is rapidly approaching the status of a standardized element of geoacoustic characterization of the sea floor. With the advent of underwater stereo cameras and, recently, multiple-megapixel digital cameras adapted for underwater use, more investigators are measuring seafloor roughness at high resolution for applications to high-frequency acoustic modeling. An assessment of the methodologies used to characterize seafloor roughness, the parameterizations of the characterization of seafloor roughness, and the predictability of seafloor roughness seems appropriate at this time. Use of the roughness power spectrum to characterize seafloor roughness has a wide applicability for acoustic modelers. Currently, the slope and intercept of the regression line through the roughness power spectrum are used to parameterize seafloor roughness for acoustic modeling. Recent availability of digital roughness height datasets allows computation of two-dimensional roughness power spectra at sub-cm resolution. Ideally, these 2-D spectra would make the estimation of 2-D roughness parameters from 1-D roughness parameters unnecessary.

Descriptors:

• *GRAIN SIZE
• *ROUGHNESS
• *SEDIMENTS
• *OCEAN BOTTOM
• STABILITY
• SYMPOSIA
• UNDERWATER CAMERAS
• GEOACOUSTICS
• OCEAN BOTTOM TOPOGRAPHY
• POWER SPECTRA
• CORES

Subject Categories:

• Physical and Dynamic Oceanography
• Hydrology, Limnology and Potamology
• Acoustics

Distribution Statement:

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE