Name: Brianna
Status: student
Grade: 9-12
Country: Australia
Date: Fall 2011
Question:
I am working on "Mapping the Ocean Floor" and I want to know how they map the ocean floor. What are the sensors that are used? How is a true map made when there are different temperature layers that change imaging?
Replies:
Hi Brianna,
The main tool used to map the ocean floor, is sonar. Sound waves are
sent downward, and when they hit the bottom, they echo back upward
again and are received by the sonar device. Knowing the speed of
sound in water, the time it takes for the echo to return tells the
operator how deep the ocean is directly below. Sophisticated sonar
devices actually show a map of the bottom as the ship passes over.
Temperature differences do influence the speed of sound in water
slightly, and therefore do somewhat influence accuracy of the sonar
readings. But this can partly be corrected by knowing the general
temperature versus ocean depth in that part of the ocean.
Regards,
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