Processing of MBES Backscatter for Benthic Habitat Mapping/ Species and Community Habitat Mapping of the Bay of Fundy

The Nova Scotia Community College received $104,650 in 2016 from the Fisheries and Oceans Canada Partnership Fund in support of research led by Dr. Craig Brown. Many different types of marine research rely on hydrographic information. The Canadian Ocean Mapping Research and Education Network (COMREN), which is currently under development, will facilitate collaboration between activities related to ocean and freshwater mapping in Canada. Using the Bay of Fundy as a study site, this project will evaluate available backscatter tools and develop a standardized method for analyzing seafloor backscatter data with the goal of making Canada an international leader in the field of ocean floor mapping. Key COMREN objectives include:

• study, testing and operationalization of autonomous surface vehicles (ASV);
• research on backscatter and reflectance related to benthic (bottom) habitat mapping; and,
• research and development of automated “on-the-fly” hydrographic data processing.

This research will provide a foundation for the development of a wide range of ocean mapping products.

Project Number: MAR2016.10
Year: 2016
Partner: Nova Scotia Community College
Principal Investigator(s): Craig Brown
Eco-region: Atlantic