Seafloor Exploration and Surveying 2

Learning Outcomes

Learning Outcomes

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• Written presentation of both scientific and commercial material.
• Understand the techniques for the acquisition, processing and interpretation of seabed and sub-seabed high resolution marine geophysical data sets.
• Apply a range of key skills at Masters level.
• Successfully integrate a diverse set of geological and geophysical data sets for the solution of a range of geological problems.
• Understand the basic theoretical concepts behind high resolution marine geophysics.
• Working in groups.
• Oral presentation skills.

The course is primarily practical based, and students will get hands-on experience with the relevant industry-standard software and data from the outset. Students will also spend one day in the field on the RV Callista acquiring geophysical data (such as multibeam bathymetry, sidescan sonar, water column velocity, and sub bottom seismic) that will be added to an exceptional repeat survey dataset that has been acquired over the same site since 2008, which will be the basis for their assignments.

Formal lectures at the beginning of the course outline the module content, the relevance of geophysical methods to offshore renewables, communications, and energy infrastructure, and to introduce students to the key concepts of acoustic surveying. Throughout the course, additional lectures introduce different data types and concepts. The module provides students with a holistic view of the offshore site investigation process through the example of a proposed offshore wind farm in the east Solent.

1.Processing of multibeam bathymetry data acquired during the boat day. Subsequent analysis and interpretation of the processed data along with pre-existing multibeam datasets that cover the proposed wind farm infrastructure using tools in GIS. Aiming to identify and determine bedform types and sediment mobility patterns, and the associated risks to the proposed infrastructure.

2.Interpretation of sub-bottom seismic reflection datasets (pinger, sparker, and boomer) to identify hazardous shallow gas deposits, and determine bedrock depth across the survey site. Students will also have hand-on access to sediment samples and core samples to ground truth their interpretations. Students will also process sidescan sonar data. Using their results, students will build a 3D ground model of the survey site using seismic interpretation software.

3.Geotechnical analysis of wind turbine foundation stability using interactive modelling that integrates core information and ground model results.

Boat Practical: This will involve the acquisition of multi-beam swath bathymetry, sidescan sonar, and high resolution sub-bottom profiling data.

Formal Lectures: There are series of lectures at the beginning of the course to introduce the content and key concepts; There are additional lectures that take place at the beginning of practical sessions to provide the relevant background on the data types and processing and interpretation methods that students will employ to carry out their assignments. These are supplemented with recorded walk-through videos to assist students with using the software.

Computer practicals to facilitate processing, analysis, and interpretation of seabed and subsurface geophysical datasets. For parts of the module you will be working in teams, replicating a likely industry environment.

Summative

This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.