The course treats the following topics:
- Relevant physical oceanography
- Elements of marine geology (seafloor topography, acoustical properties of sediments and rocks)
- Underwater sound propagation (ray acoustics, ocean noise)
- Interaction of sound with the seafloor (reflection, scattering)
- Principles of sonar (beamforming)
- Underwater acoustic mapping systems (single beam echo sounding, multi-beam echo sounding, sidescan sonar)
- Data analysis (refraction corrections, digital terrain modelling)
- Applications (hydrographic survey planning and navigation, coastal engineering)
- Current and future developments.
The course discusses several Geopgraphical Information System (GIS) and Remote Sensing (RS) tools relevant for analysis of (problems in and aspects of) water systems. Within the course, several applications are introduced. These applications include GIS tools to determine mapping of surface water systems (catchment delineation, reservoirs and canal systems). The RS tools include determination of evaporation and soil moisture patterns, and measurement of water levels in surface water systems.
