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Amelia Earhart Search Forum => General discussion => Topic started by: Gary Fabian on July 03, 2013, 10:24:33 AM

Title: Multibeam Sonar
Post by: Gary Fabian on July 03, 2013, 10:24:33 AM
Hello All,

This is my first post.  I recently discovered this forum after noticing unusually heavy referral traffic from (tighar.org) to my website (ub88.org).  I have to admit that I'm not well versed on all the competing theories surrounding Amelia Earhart, so I can't say whether I agree or disagree with the Nikumaroro hypothesis.  There is an enormous amount of information here to educate myself with and I will attempt to do that on my own time.  In the meantime I do have a question for you that I don't think has been asked before.  Please correct me if I'm wrong.

I just finished reading the thread entitled "Sonar Target."

http://tighar.org/smf/index.php/topic,1140.0.html (http://tighar.org/smf/index.php/topic,1140.0.html)

On Page 2, Reply 21 of that thread Mr. Gillespie stated "Multi-beam sonar does not have sufficient resolution to find wreckage..."

On it's face, this is not a true statement.  Multibeam sonar does have the ability to resolve objects as small as aircraft.  Perhaps Mr. Gillespie meant to qualify that statement because there are many variables that affect multibeam sonar resolution (especially water depth), but I don't think that's important as far as my question is concerned.

My question is this.  Has anyone analyzed the multibeam sonar data recorded by the KOK for potential man-made anomalies?

Thank you.

Gary Fabian
www.ub88.org (http://www.ub88.org)
Title: Re: Multibeam Sonar
Post by: Ric Gillespie on July 03, 2013, 10:38:53 AM
My question is this.  Has anyone analyzed the multibeam sonar data recorded by the KOK for potential man-made anomalies?

Although some multi-beam systems are, as you say, capable of resolution sufficient to find objects as small as aircraft or even smaller, KOK's SeaBeam system is quite lo-res and useful only for it's intended purpose of general bathymetric mapping.
Title: Re: Multibeam Sonar
Post by: Gary Fabian on July 03, 2013, 01:27:53 PM
Okay Ric, thanks.  I'm not personally familiar with the sonar aboard the KOK.  My only other comment on the matter would be that the term lo-res is relative.  I don't know what it means in this particular case.  I only brought up the subject because I would hate to see a potentially important resource go unused.

Cheers,
Gary
Title: Re: Multibeam Sonar
Post by: Ric Gillespie on July 03, 2013, 01:35:50 PM
Okay Ric, thanks.  I'm not personally familiar with the sonar aboard the KOK.  My only other comment on the matter would be that the term lo-res is relative.  I don't know what it means in this particular case.  I only brought up the subject because I would hate to see a potentially important resource go unused.

Here's an example of what we got from the KOK system.  As you can see, not much resolution.