Acoustics Research

Fisheries acoustics data are collected from more than 200 sea-days each year aboard the FRV DELAWARE II and FRV ALBATROSS IV (decommissioned) and the FSV Henry B. Bigelow during pelagic, bottom-trawl, and marine mammal surveys. Acoustic sampling operations include continuous measurements using hull-mounted transducers and multi-frequency scientific echosounders. Biological sampling with midwater and bottom trawls, and underwater video deployments is conducted to verify species-specific backscatter and characterize sea-floor habitat. In-situ and laboratory experiments aid in understanding species-specific acoustic measurements. We are continuously developing, testing, and evaluating advanced sampling technologies during laboratory and field experiments to improve abundance estimates and map spatial and temporal distributions of fish and invertebrates. Acoustic, optic, and biological data are audited and archived in the NEFSC relational data management system.

The Fisheries Acoustic Research Program Advanced Sampling Technologies Research Group (ASTRG) implements state-of-the-art fisheries acoustic technologies to provide cost-effective and accurate fisheries-independent population estimates of commercially important pelagic fish stocks in the Northwest Atlantic.

For each deployment within a cruise, the following data are captured: cruise id, transect number, date/time, type of transect, gear deployed, start/end latitude and longitude, start/end EK vessel logs, horizontal resolution of the Sa data, the vertical layer of the water column, the lower/upper depths of the water column layer, volume back-scatter, minimum Sv threshold applied to the data, code for species caught, acoustical integrated energy for a specific species, EK transceiver frequency, CTD cast information, the Sa value for the layer and ESDU interval scaled to nautical miles squared.

Submit e-mail or web-base request to NCEI

There may be constraints due to the timing between the time the data is archived and when it becomes available

All the data have doi numbers. It is highly recommended that any use of the data includes citation of the doi.

RDBMS: Oracle

Very high

Rare. Omissions could occur if a sensor data value is out of range or missing.

All instruments are calibrated prior to data collection cruise. Data collection software provides validations.

Archival of source data preserving unaltered collected data, Scheduled backups, Remote storage backups, Password protection.

There exist event log files for source data; a step by step users manual which includes parameter settings on instruments and calibration steps; publications describe how data are post-processed and the perl code which is used in post-processing.