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RESEARCH SUPERVISOR - DR RAY MERTON

RESEARCH

The Application of CHRIS Data to the Multi-temporal & Multi-angular Study of Near-shore Marine Bathymetry.

This research utilises multi-angular CHRIS hyperspectral data to determine bathymetry within the near-shore zone defined as the area from the shoreline to the 15m bathymetric contour. Naval Hydrographic Charts at 1:75,000 in GEOTIFF format are routinely used for commercial, recreational, and military uses, but these existing datasets poorly match the accuracy of hyperspectral mapping methods and ground-truthed seafloor topography. This is particularly evident in the mapping of absolute depth and the alignment/orientation of bathymetric contours. Research is in part designed to optimize naval military application use of hyperspectral data, a rapidly expanding sector that is adopting this technology to accurately map benthic topography in an operational setting.

Study sites for this research are located along Sydney's Northern Beaches (NSW) and Duranbah Beach (QLD). Field, lab, airborne and satellite image data (HyMap & CHRIS) are being used to derive spectral signatures to effectively map bathymetric classes within the near-shore zone.

Selected hyperspectral classification tools such as MNF and n-dimensional analysis will be optimized to further develop new and operationally efficient means for determining near-shore bathymetry. Emphasis is being placed on the complex 0 - 5m depth zone to map optical turbidity and wave aeration as a surrogate of masked underlying rip channels and irregular seafloor topography, linking to shoreline-based research by Libby Boak.