Multi-Beam Echo Sounders

Multi-Beam Echo Sounders offer the hydrographic surveyor the ability to measure and record seabed bathymetry over a wide swath beneath the survey vessel. Multi-Beam Echo Sounders are generally hull mounted or pole mounted to a vessel. The coverage area on the seafloor, often referred to as swath width, is dependent on the depth of the water. This is typically two to four times the water depth for deep water systems and up to 10 times the water depth for shallow water systems. Multi-beam echosounder systems are the industry standard in many countries as they offer the surveyor 100% ensonification of the seabed, full bathymetry of the seabed and full feature detection capability at a high rate of effort. Multi-beam data also provides the surveyor with useful backscatter information which is building sonar mosaics of the seabed. The Multi-beam echosounder is now a very useful tool for the environmental surveyor who can use the system for environmental surveys and habitat mapping of the seabed.