H11320_1M_SSS_GEO_EN.TIF: Enhanced Composite Sidescan Sonar Mosaic of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Survey H11320 in Rhode Island Sound (Geographic)

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Frequently-anticipated questions:

What does this data set describe?

Title:
H11320_1M_SSS_GEO_EN.TIF: Enhanced Composite Sidescan Sonar Mosaic of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Survey H11320 in Rhode Island Sound (Geographic)
Abstract:
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is working cooperatively with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to interpret the surficial geology in estuaries along the coast of the northeastern United States. The purpose of our present study is to interpret the distributions of surficial sediments and sedimentary environments in an area of Rhode Island Sound using sidescan sonar imagery, multibeam bathymetry and seismic records. The mosaic, bathymetry and their interpretations serve many purposes, including: (1) defining the geological variability of the sea floor, which is one of the primary controls of benthic habitat diversity; (2) improving our understanding of the processes that control the distribution and transport of bottom sediments and the distribution of benthic habitats and associated infaunal community structures; and (3) providing a detailed framework for future research, monitoring, and management activities. The sidescan sonar mosaics and bathymetry images also serve as base maps for subsequent sedimentological, geochemical, and biological observations, because precise information on environmental setting is important for selection of sampling sites and for accurate interpretations of point measurements.
  1. How should this data set be cited?

    U.S. Geological Survey, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2007, H11320_1M_SSS_GEO_EN.TIF: Enhanced Composite Sidescan Sonar Mosaic of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Survey H11320 in Rhode Island Sound (Geographic): Open-File Report 2007-1150, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

    This is part of the following larger work.

    McMullen, K.Y., Poppe, L.J., Twomey, E.R., Danforth, W.W., Haupt, T.A., and Crocker, J.M., 2007, Sidescan Sonar Image, Multibeam Bathymetry, and Surficial Geologic Interpretations of the Sea Floor in Rhode Island Sound, off Sakonnet Point, Rhode Island: Open-File Report 2007-1150, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?

    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -71.212544
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -71.082075
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 41.399086
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 41.313383

  3. What does it look like?

    <http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2007/1150/data/sidescan/geo/h11320_1m_sss_geo_en/h11320_1m_sss_geo_en.gif> (GIF)
    Overview of enhanced composite sidescan sonar mosaic of NOAA Survey H11320

  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?

    Calendar_Date: 2004
    Currentness_Reference: ground condition

  5. What is the general form of this data set?

    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: remote-sensing image

  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?

    1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?

      This is a Raster data set. It contains the following raster data types:

      • Dimensions 9285 x 14916 x 1, type Pixel

    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?

      Horizontal positions are specified in geographic coordinates, that is, latitude and longitude. Latitude and longitude values are specified in Decimal degrees.

      The horizontal datum used is D_WGS_1984.
      The ellipsoid used is WGS_1984.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.000000.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257224.

  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)

  2. Who also contributed to the data set?

    Please acknowledge NOAA and the NOAA Ship RUDE as the originators of the data from which this data set was derived.

  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?

    Katherine McMullen
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Sediment Lab Technician
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2277 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    kmcmullen@usgs.gov

Why was the data set created?

This GIS overlay is a component of NOAA Survey H11320, Rhode Island Sound GIS database and contains the completed sidescan sonar mosaic for the study area. This image has been enhanced for better viewing. Light tones represent relatively harder returns, higher backscatter and generally coarser sediments. Dark tones represent relatively softer returns, lower backscatter and generally finer grained sediments.

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?

    raw sidescan sonar data (source 1 of 1)
    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, raw sidescan sonar data.

    Source_Contribution:
    Original sidescan sonar data acquired during National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) survey H11320.

  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?

    (process 1 of 3)
    The data for this survey were acquired in XTF (extended Triton data format) using a high-resolution Klein 5500. The Klein 5500 tow fish emits five beams on each side of the ship track and transmits at 455 kHz. The sidescan sonar data were digitally recorded in XTF format using an ISIS data acquisition software package. All sidescan-sonar data were processed using USGS sidescan-sonar processing software packages XSonar and ShowImage. A median filtering routine was applied to the sidescan-sonar data to remove speckle noise, resulting in a 0.06-m pixel size. TVG was applied to sonar data collected on Julian Day 118 and 133 (year 2004), as the dynamic range of these data were low. Sonar data were further processed to correct for slant-range and radiometric distortion inherent in the sonar data. All processed data were mosaicked using XSonar, resulting in an enhanced, geographically correct, sidescan-sonar mosaic with 1 meter/pixel resolution. The composite mosaic was converted to a TIFF image using the following LINUX commands:

    rawtopgm -headerskip 80 11000 9000 mosaic.ras | pnmtotiff - > mosaic.tif

    An associated TIF world file was then created using LINUX 'vi'.

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Jane Denny
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2311 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    jdenny@usgs.gov

    Data sources used in this process:
    • XTF sidescan sonar data

    Data sources produced in this process:

    • ris_sonar.tif
    • ris_sonar.twf

    Date: 2006 (process 2 of 3)
    The TIF image was then imported into Adobe Photoshop CS2 in order to apply a 'stretch' (i.e. increase the dynamic range of the data) to the image. The saved image was then imported to ESRI ArcGIS.

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Jane Denny
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2311 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    jdenny@usgs.gov

    Data sources used in this process:
    • ris_sonar.tif

    Data sources produced in this process:

    • ris_str.tif

    Date: 2006 (process 3 of 3)
    Image was converted to geographic coordinates.

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Katherine McMullen
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Sediment Lab Technician
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2277 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    kmcmullen@usgs.gov

    Data sources used in this process:
    • ris_str.tif

    Data sources produced in this process:

    • h11320_1m_sss_geo_en.tif

  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?

How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

  1. How well have the observations been checked?

    There are no attributes associated with a GeoTIFF image.

  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?

    Navigation was by differential GPS.

  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?

  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?

    All collected data were processed and used to generate the digital mosaic.

  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?

How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?

Access_Constraints: None
Use_Constraints:
Public domain data are freely redistributable with proper metadata and source attribution. Please recognize the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as the originators of this dataset.

  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)

    Lawrence Poppe
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2314 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    lpoppe@usgs.gov

  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

    Downloadable Data: enhanced composite sidescan sonar mosaic of NOAA Survey H11320 (geographic)

  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

    Although this data set has been used by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), no warranty, expressed or implied is made by the USGS or NOAA as to the accuracy of the data and/or related materials. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by the USGS or NOAA in the use of these data or related materials. Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government

  4. How can I download or order the data?

  5. What hardware or software do I need in order to use the data set?

    This image is available as a GeoTIFF image with an accompanying world file. To utilize this data, the user must have an image viewer, image processing or GIS software package capable of importing a GeoTIFF image.

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 11-Jul-2007
Metadata author:
U.S. Geological Survey
c/o Katherine McMullen
Sediment Lab Technician
384 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole, MA 02543
USA

(508) 548-8700 x2277 (voice)
(508) 457-2310 (FAX)
kmcmullen@usgs.gov

Metadata standard:
FGDC Content Standards for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)
Metadata extensions used:

Generated by mp version 2.8.6 on Wed Jul 11 14:33:08 2007