HR: 1340h
AN: OS33B-0586    [Abstracts]
TI: Digital Image Processing Techniques for Enhancement and Classification of MR1 Side Scan Sonar Imagery and Preliminary Results of Manganese Nodule Occurrence between the Clarion and Clipperton Fracture Zones, NE Equatorial Pacific
AU: * Kim, H
EM: hyskim@kordi.re.kr
AF: Deep-Sea Resources Research Center, Korea Ocean Research and Development Institute, Ansan P.O. Box 29, Ansan, 425-600 Korea, Republic of
AU: Park, C
EM: ckpark@kordi.re.kr
AF: Deep-Sea Resources Research Center, Korea Ocean Research and Development Institute, Ansan P.O. Box 29, Ansan, 425-600 Korea, Republic of
AU: Park, J
EM: joseph@ust21.co.kr
AF: UST21 Inc., 5th floor, Yongun Building, 406-6, Sungui1-dong, Incheon, 402-011 Korea, Republic of
AU: Kim, K
EM: kkim@kordi.re.kr
AF: Deep-Sea Resources Research Center, Korea Ocean Research and Development Institute, Ansan P.O. Box 29, Ansan, 425-600 Korea, Republic of
AB: The recent growth in the production rate of digital side scan sonar images, coupled with the rapid expansion of systematic seafloor exploration programs, has created a need for fast and quantitative means of processing seafloor imagery. A number of numerical techniques used to enhance and classify imagery produced by long range side scan sonar (MR1) in the Clarion and Clippertion Fracture Zones, NE equatorial Pacific. Side scan sonar imagery is traditionally interpreted visually and qualitatively by experts. Textural Analysis enables a more objective approach, supplementing the interpreter with reliable quantitative results. Grey-level co-occurrence matrices describe numerically textual information and detect subtle details invisible to the human eyes. The area between the Clarion and Clipperton fracture zones (NE equatorial Pacific) is one of the highest manganese nodule abundance in the world oceans. A detailed analysis of MR1 sonar images and ground truth - free-fall grab (FFG) data in the area, reveals a close relationship between sonar characters of seafloor and manganese nodule occurrence. The close relationship between distribution of sonar imagery and manganese nodule abundance implies that seafloor topography and sediment thickness are important controlling factors for occurrence of manganese nodules.
DE: 4223 Descriptive and regional oceanography
DE: 4231 Equatorial oceanography
DE: 4259 Ocean acoustics
DE: 4294 Instruments and techniques
DE: 3045 Seafloor morphology and bottom photography
SC: Ocean Sciences [OS]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting