Multi-Sensor River Surveys for Bridge Maintenence North Queensland, Australia June 2016

Working with vessels of opportunity in controlled conditions presents a series of geophysical problems for Acoustic Imaging to solve.  The unique environmental conditions of northern Australia include remote locations, large saltwater crocodiles, muddy estuarine rivers and fast flowing creeks keeping the river floor in constant flux, high heat and humidity.  These conditions add additional challenges for collecting a quality dataset fit for meaningful interpretation. 

This project, completed in Far North Queensland in June 2016, shows a structured approach to acquired the quality bathymetric, backscatter and sub-surface strata dataset used to provide information for maintenance programs under remote bridges that would otherwise be difficult (and dangerous) to assess.

Sensors deployed  include Applanix POS MV IP68 (small form factor), R2Sonic 2020 multibeam sonar heads (small form factor) and Innomar SES-2000 sub bottom profiler (compact).  Data was acquired, processed and analysed using QPS QINSy, Chesapeake Sonarwiz, Applanix POSPac MMS, QPS Qimera and QPS Fledermaus software.  Other digital tools used included data from the surrounding GNSS Base network and Nearmap satellite images.