Geology, geography and global energy

Scientific and Technical Journal

Technique and results of the echo sounding on ecological ranges of the Black Sea

2013. №4, pp. 122-132

Yevsyukov Yuriy D.  - C.Sc. in Geography, Leading research assistant, Southern Branch of P. P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology Russian Academy of Sciences, 1g Prostornaya st., Gelendzhik, Krasnodar region, 353467, Russian Federation ,, evsgeol@rambler.ru

Rudnev Valeriy I.  - Younger Research Assistant, Southern Branch of P. P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology Russian Academy of Sciences, 1g Prostornaya st., Gelendzhik, Krasnodar region, 353467, Russian Federation,, evsgeol@rambler.ru

Bottom topography of the seas and oceans is known, basically, according to the regional echo sounding. Their results realized in numerous article, monographs and cartographic constructions. For more detailed studying the structure of the bottom, researches carried out, as a rule, on ranges. The methodology of such researches developed at the Institute of Oceanology of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, and in the late 50’s of the last century, first applied on 18 stations in the study of benthic zone in the northeast part of the Pacific Ocean. To solve this problem was executed a detailed echo sounding, photographing the bottom, collecting soil samples, benthic fauna and other observations. In 1960, in the Black Sea by an advanced technique was performed detailed echo sounding on the nine test ranges within the continental slope and abyssal plain, which allowed defining a completely new features of the development of meso- and micro-relief of this basin. In addition, have been identified complexity and irregularity of sediments and breeds at the bottom. It has caused necessity to execute complex geologo-geophysical researches by a method of detailed works on ranges. The use of satellite navigation systems, the emergence of multi-functional sonar and processing of raw materials on computers have essentially increased accuracy and, most importantly, the quality of cartographic documents. However, in the last decade due to objective and subjective reasons, the study of the bottom relief on ranges of Black sea had to perform by «non-standard» technique. It is necessary for a more specific justification for subsequent samplings of soil corer and straight-through pipes of large diameter. Important was the determination of the following characteristics: a detailed structure of the bottom surface, the location of sampling points (vertices of the ridges, slopes, valleys thalwegs, etc.), the slope of the bottom topography elements, etc. The result was a study of uneven distribution of sediment and its relationship with the heterogeneity and diversity of the relief of the bottom surface.

Key words: range,ecology,monitoring,sampling,orography,shelf,morphology,relief,neotectonics

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