Backscatter 0.5m TIFF Mosaic of St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands, 2004

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Frequently anticipated questions:


What does this data set describe?

Title:
Backscatter 0.5m TIFF Mosaic of St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands, 2004
Abstract:
This image represents a 0.5 meter resolution backscatter mosaic of the south shore of St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands.

NOAA's NOS/NCCOS/CCMA Biogeography Team and NOAA/NOS/OCS/HSD personnel, in collaboration with NOAA vessel Nancy Foster and territory, federal, and private sector partners, acquired multibeam bathymetry data in the US Virgin Islands from 2/18/04 to 3/5/04. Data was acquired with a pole-mounted Reson 8101 ER multibeam echosounder (240 kHz) and processed by a NOAA contractor using CARIS HIPS v5.4 software. Data has all correctors applied (attitude, sound velocity) and has been reduced to mean lower low water (MLLW) using final approved tides from NOAA COOPS. Data is in UTM zone 20 north, datum WGS84. Within CARIS, each line of backscatter data was evaluated for bottom tracking and was slant-range corrected. Data was not corrected for gain or transmit power artifacts. Backscatter mosaics were then created using the CARIS shine-through option. Finally, a georeferenced imagery file was exported from the mosaic.

While the project was conducted to meet IHO Order 2 accuracy standards, there is a roll artifact (averaging 0.5m high) in the dataset that the user should take into consideration when performing any analysis.

Supplemental_Information:
Depth datum is Mean lower low water, units are meters and encoding method is explicit depth coordinate included with horizontal coordinates Access Data Acquisition and Processing Report at http://ccma.nos.noaa.gov/products/biogeography/usvi_nps/pdf/NF-04-06_DAPR.pdf
  1. How might this data set be cited?
    Department of Commerce (DOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Ocean Service (NOS), Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA), Biogeography Program, 200412, Backscatter 0.5m TIFF Mosaic of St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands, 2004: NOAA's Ocean Service, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS), Silver Spring, MD.

    Online Links:

  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -64.873298
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -64.772723
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 18.314378
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 18.255224
  3. What does it look like?
  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
    Beginning_Date: 18-Feb-2004
    Ending_Date: 05-Mar-2004
    Currentness_Reference: ground condition
  5. What is the general form of this data set?
    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: raster digital data
  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?
    1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?
      This is a Raster data set. It contains the following raster data types:
      • Dimensions 12885 x 21142 x 1, type Pixel
    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?
      Grid_Coordinate_System_Name: Universal Transverse Mercator
      Universal_Transverse_Mercator:
      UTM_Zone_Number: 20
      Transverse_Mercator:
      Scale_Factor_at_Central_Meridian: 0.999600
      Longitude_of_Central_Meridian: -63.000000
      Latitude_of_Projection_Origin: 0.000000
      False_Easting: 500000.000000
      False_Northing: 0.000000
      Planar coordinates are encoded using Row and Column
      Abscissae (x-coordinates) are specified to the nearest 0.500000
      Ordinates (y-coordinates) are specified to the nearest 0.500000
      Planar coordinates are specified in meters
      The horizontal datum used is D_WGS_1984.
      The ellipsoid used is WGS_1984.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.000000.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257224.
  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
  2. Who also contributed to the data set?
    Department of Commerce (DOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Ocean Service (NOS), Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA), Biogeography Program

    Department of Commerce (DOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Ocean Service (NOS), Office of Coast Survey (OCS), Hydrographic Surveys Division (HSD)

    NOAA - NMAO personnel and ship NANCY FOSTER

  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
    Department of Commerce (DOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Ocean Service (NOS), Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA), Biogeography Program
    Project Manager - US Virgin Islands
    1305 East West Highway, SSMC4
    Silver Spring, MD
    USA

    (301) 713-3028 (voice)
    (301) 713-4388 (FAX)
    Contact_Instructions:
    Contact info is for CCMA general reception. Please ask for current Biogeography project manager for USVI.

Why was the data set created?

This multibeam data product was collected as project NF-04-06 during year one of a two-year NOAA scientific research mission in the US Virgin Islands to characterize nearshore coral reef habitats. The mission purpose is to better understand the resources within the surveyed reef habitats, and ultimately develop species utilization models linking physical habitats with biological information. The multibeam backscatter, multibeam bathymetry, and ground truth video footage collected during the 2004 mission will be used internally to characterize sea floor topography and to create benthic habitat maps, helping NOAA meet its mapping commitment to the US Coral Reef Task Force. The resulting publicly-distributed data is also a contribution to the greater scientific community interested in the USVI seafloor.

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?
    NF-04-06 XTF Raw Multibeam Data (source 1 of 3)
    Department of Commerce (DOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Ocean Service (NOS), Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA), Biogeography Program, Unpublished Material, NF-04-06 XTF Raw Multibeam Data.

    Type_of_Source_Media: external hard drive
    Source_Contribution: Original raw full resolution dataset.
    NF-04-06 HDCS Processed Multibeam Data (source 2 of 3)
    Department of Commerce (DOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Ocean Service (NOS), Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA), Biogeography Program, Unpublished Material, NF-04-06 HDCS Processed Multibeam Data.

    Type_of_Source_Media: external hard drive
    Source_Contribution:
    Processed, cleaned, and corrected full resolution dataset. Sourced from raw XTF data.
    NF-04-06 CARIS Backscatter Mosaic (source 3 of 3)
    Department of Commerce (DOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Ocean Service (NOS), Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA), Biogeography Program, Unpublished Material, NF-04-06 CARIS Backscatter Mosaic.

    Type_of_Source_Media: external hard drive
    Source_Contribution:
    CARIS shine-through backscatter mosaic. Sourced from processed HDCS data.
  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?
    Date: Mar-2004 (process 1 of 4)
    For this project, the Chief Scientist was NOAA/NOS/NCCOS/CCMA's Dr. Mark Monaco and the Lead Hydrographer was NOAA/NOS/OCS/HSD/PHB's Physical Scientist Sean Rooney. Data was collected aboard the NOAA ship Nancy Foster from 2/18/04 to 3/5/04, as project number NF-04-06-VI. Multibeam data was acquired in XTF format with a pole-mounted Reson 8101 ER multibeam echosounder (240 kHz), with options 033 and 040. Triton-Elics ISIS 6.20 software was used to interface with the Reson system. Line spacing for acquisition was typically three times the water depth, giving 100% bottom coverage, and data was retained out to 70 degrees from nadir. Heave, roll, pitch and heading correctors were collected using an Ixsea Octans gyrocompass and integrated motion sensor. Sound velocity profiles were acquired with a Seabird Electronics SeaCat SBE19 CTD profiler and processed using Velociwin 8.40 (NOS HSTP product), then concatenated. Positioning was obtained using a Trimble DSM212L GPS receiver with differential correctors from U.S. Coast Guard beacon Isabel, PR. Data was reduced to Mean Lower-Low Water (MLLW) using final approved tides from NOAA COOPS, based on National Water Level Observation Network (NWLON) primary tide stations at Charlotte Amalie, VI (9751639) and Lime Tree Bay, VI (9751401). Data sources used in this process:
    • NF-04-06 XTF Multibeam Data
    Date: Aug-2004 (process 2 of 4)
    SWMB data in XTF format were converted and processed using CARIS HIPS v5.3 and 5.4 software, resulting in a CARIS HDCS format dataset with all correctors applied. Attitude and SWMB data was cleaned of fliers, and SWMB data was reviewed in subset mode by a NOAA contractor. Data sources used in this process:
    • NF-04-06 HDCS Multibeam Data
    Date: Nov-2004 (process 3 of 4)
    The contractor used CARIS HIPS v5.4 to evaluate each line for bottom tracking and to perform slant-range corrections. Data was not corrected for gain or transmit power artifacts. After this cursory processing, the data was mosaiced together using the shine-through backscatter option. The resulting backscatter mosaic was then exported as an image file. Data sources used in this process:
    • NF-04-06 CARIS Backscatter Mosaic
    Date: Nov-2004 (process 4 of 4)
    Metadata imported. Data sources used in this process:
    • D:\Metadata\USVI 2004 Templates\MB_ImageBackscatter_MetadataTemplate.xml
  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?

How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

  1. How well have the observations been checked?
  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
    See Data Acquisition and Processing Report (DAPR) for NF-04-06. Also titled Data Acquisition and Certification Report for cruise number NF-04-06-VI.
  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
    See Data Acquisition and Processing Report (DAPR) for NF-04-06. Also titled Data Acquisition and Certification Report for cruise number NF-04-06-VI.
  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
    n/a
  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?
    While the project was conducted to meet IHO Order 2 accuracy standards, there is a serious roll artifact (averaging 0.5m high) in the dataset that the user should take into consideration when performing any analysis. This artifact is likely the result of small errors is the measurement of sensor offsets, combined with strumming motion from the pole on which the sonar was mounted.

How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?
Access_Constraints: Please cite any use of this data.
Use_Constraints:
Note: NOT TO BE USED FOR NAVIGATION.

These data were prepared by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, make any warranty, expressed or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed in this report, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference therein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof. Any views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof. Although all data have been used by NOAA, no warranty, expressed or implied, is made by NOAA as to the accuracy of the data and/or related materials. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by NOAA in the use of these data or related materials.

  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)
    Department of Commerce (DOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Ocean Service (NOS), Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA), Biogeography Program
    Project Manager - US Virgin Islands
    1305 East West Highway, SSMC4
    Silver Spring, MD
    USA

    (301) 713-3028 (voice)
    (301) 713-4388 (FAX)
    Contact_Instructions:
    Contact info is for CCMA general reception. Please ask for current Biogeography project manager for USVI.
  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set? Downloadable Data
  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?
    These data were prepared by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, make any warranty, expressed or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed in this report, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference therein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof. Any views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof. Although all data have been used by NOAA, no warranty, expressed or implied, is made by NOAA as to the accuracy of the data and/or related materials. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by NOAA in the use of these data or related materials.
  4. How can I download or order the data?

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 29-Mar-2020
Last Reviewed: 02-May-2011
Metadata author:
NOAA/NOS/NCCOS/CCMA Biogeography
1305 East West Highway, SSMC4
Silver Spring, MD
USA

(301) 713-3028 (voice)
Metadata standard:
FGDC Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)

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