Fine processing and analysis of seabed topographic features in the outer shelf of the north of the East China Sea

Abstract:

On the outer shelf of the north of the East China Sea, seabed ridges and troughs are widely distributed consecutively. The seabed bedforms are in the area where Yellow Sea Trough extends to the Okinawa Trough and lies in the entrance channel of Yellow Sea Warm Current (YSWC), one branch of the Kuroshio Current. The fine post-processing and characteristic analysis for seabed bedforms data will contribute to an overall understanding of seabed topographic features and distribution of the ridges and troughs. Based on the high-precision multi-beam echo sounder (MBES) data, we create a high-precision seabed Digital Terrain Model (DTM) and sonar mosaic images to generate high-resolution 3D seabed maps, as well as seabed slope, aspect maps and other special terrain profiles. From those maps, we can measure height, width, length, direction and other characteristic parameters of the seabed Rippled Scour Depressions (RSDs) and sand ridges. We find a deep seabed gully with the water depth of 153.2 m in the northeast corner of the study area. The relative height difference is up to 32 m indicates strong erosion with dramatic changes in seabed topography. There are also more than 10 large-scale straight RSDs and sand ridges, all NW-SE direction, in length from a few kilometers to 40 km. The general height difference is about 5 m and the maximum height difference can reach up to 10 m. In the study area we find out a great quantity of seabed sand ridges and erode RSDs, which form ridges-troughs and erosion-deposition special seabed topographic features.