UKHO & Royal Navy underwater discoveries
Spectacular images from a survey of the underwater remains of Mulberry B, a secretive artificial harbour off the north western French coast used in World War 2 to support Allied landings in Normandy, have been released by the UK Hydrographic Office.
Created from a detailed 3D map that will allow archaeologists to assess the rate of deterioration of what remains, the images are the result of a two week joint project carried out late last year by the UKHO and NetSurvey of Banbury UK using a scanning laser and multibeam sonar. Previously hidden from all but divers, the images show the underwater remains lying at a depth of around 5m.
According to Chris Howlett, head of the UKHO’s Seabed Data Centre, the project marked the first time the Mulberry B site had been surveyed for almost 20 years following earlier single beam and sidescan sonar navigational studies completed by SHOM, the French Hydrographic Office.
Meanwhile, further afield, the Royal Navy reports discovery of a Grand Canyon style ocean floor deep under the Red Sea following surveys carried out by its multi-role hydrographic vessel, HMS Enterprise. Discovering the 250m deep canyon after leaving the Egyptian port of Safaga as part of a nine month mission to improve understanding of the waters east of Suez, the state of the art vessel will remain in the Middle East until the summer. It is expected to build on the successes of its sister ship, HMS Echo, which discovered numerous wrecks and obstacles during a 19 month deployment in the same region.
