Oregon OCS Seafloor Mapping: Selected Lease Blocks Relevant to Renewable Energy
This data release about Oregon Offshore Wind Pilot Project includes multibeam echosounder bathmetry and backscatter intensity data, and observations of seafloor substrate from a towed bottom video camera. The Offshore Wind Pilot Project was proposed by Principle Power, Inc, in May 2013. The proposed lease request is approximately 15 nautical miles offshore Coos Bay, Oregon with an area of approximately 15 square miles. The project would consist of five 6.0 megawatt (MW) wind turbine generators mounted on floating foundations, anchored to the seafloor in 1,200 to 1,600 feet water depth. This USGS study is funded by BOEM to acquire data and generate a CMECS habitat map in the area surrounding the Pilot Project site. Operations were conducted using the USGS R/V Parke Snavely equipped with a Reson 7111 multibeam sonar mounted on starboard side pole and a towed high definition video sled. Sonar data were acquired using Reson PDS 2000 software. Horizontal positions for navigation and data collection were determined by using a POS M/V V5 operating in Differential GPS (DGPS) mode. The horizontal datum was Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) Zone 10 North and the vertical datum was MLLW. The survey was conducted using 12 hour day operations out of Charleston Harbor near Coos Bay, Oregon. The cruise plan consisted of 23 days on site split between sonar mapping and video ground truth surveying. Activities parsed out to nine days of sonar mapping, three days of video surveying, eight days of no operations due to weather, and three days mobilizing and demobilizing. Typically the Snavely would transit out to the survey area in an hour at a speed of 20 knots. Multibeam sonar operations were conducted on north or south oriented tracklines at a speed of 4 to 5 knots depending on sea state. The optimal heading for sonar operations is isobath parallel. Video operations were conducted by deploying up drift of a target and drifting over it at speeds of 1 knot or less.
Citation Information
| Publication Year | 2017 |
|---|---|
| Title | Oregon OCS Seafloor Mapping: Selected Lease Blocks Relevant to Renewable Energy |
| DOI | 10.5066/F7V40S8V |
| Authors | Guy R Cochrane, Peter Dartnell, Lenaig G. Hemery, Gerald Hatcher |
| Product Type | Data Release |
| Record Source | USGS Digital Object Identifier Catalog |
| USGS Organization | Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center |
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Oregon OCS seafloor mapping: Selected lease blocks relevant to renewable energy
Guy R Cochrane, PhD
Research Geophysicist
Peter Dartnell
Physical Scientist
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Oregon OCS seafloor mapping: Selected lease blocks relevant to renewable energy
In 2014 the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) entered into Intra-agency agreement M13PG00037 to map an area of the Oregon Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) off of Coos Bay, Oregon, under consideration for development of a floating wind energy farm. The BOEM requires seafloor mapping and site characterization studies in order to evaluate the impact of seafloAuthorsGuy R. Cochrane, Lenaïg G. Hemery, Sarah K. Henkel - Connect
Guy R Cochrane, PhD
Research GeophysicistEmailPhonePeter Dartnell
Physical ScientistEmailPhone