Assessment of acoustic backscatter intensity surveying on deep-sea ferromanganese crust: Constraints from Weijia Guyot, western Pacific Ocean
Hui-qiang Yao,
Yong-gang Liu,
Yong Yang,
Jin-feng Ma,
Huo-Dai Zhang,
Jiang-bo Ren,
Xi-guang Deng,
Gao-wen He
Affiliations
Hui-qiang Yao
Key Laboratory of Marine Mineral Resources, Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey, China Geological Survey, Ministry of Natural Resources, Guangzhou 510075, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 510301, China; Corresponding author: E-mail address: [email protected] (Hui-qiang Yao); [email protected] (Gao-wen He).
Yong-gang Liu
Key Laboratory of Marine Mineral Resources, Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey, China Geological Survey, Ministry of Natural Resources, Guangzhou 510075, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 510301, China
Yong Yang
Key Laboratory of Marine Mineral Resources, Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey, China Geological Survey, Ministry of Natural Resources, Guangzhou 510075, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 510301, China
Jin-feng Ma
Key Laboratory of Marine Mineral Resources, Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey, China Geological Survey, Ministry of Natural Resources, Guangzhou 510075, China
Huo-Dai Zhang
Key Laboratory of Marine Mineral Resources, Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey, China Geological Survey, Ministry of Natural Resources, Guangzhou 510075, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 510301, China
Jiang-bo Ren
Key Laboratory of Marine Mineral Resources, Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey, China Geological Survey, Ministry of Natural Resources, Guangzhou 510075, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 510301, China
Xi-guang Deng
Key Laboratory of Marine Mineral Resources, Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey, China Geological Survey, Ministry of Natural Resources, Guangzhou 510075, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 510301, China
Gao-wen He
Key Laboratory of Marine Mineral Resources, Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey, China Geological Survey, Ministry of Natural Resources, Guangzhou 510075, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 510301, China; Corresponding author: E-mail address: [email protected] (Hui-qiang Yao); [email protected] (Gao-wen He).
Near-bottom observation data from the manned deep submersible Jiaolong with high-precision underwater positioning data from Weijia Guyot, Magellan Seamounts in the Western Pacific Ocean are reported. Three substrate types were identified: Sediment, ferromanganese crust, and ferromanganese crust with a thin cover of sediment. The ferromanganese crusts show clear zoning and their continuity is usually disturbed by sediments on areas of the mountainside with relatively gentle slope gradients. The identified substrate spatial distributions correspond to acoustic backscatter intensity data, with regions of high intensity always including crust development and regions of low intensity always having sediment. Therefore, acoustic backscatter intensity surveying appears useful in the delineation and evaluation of crust resources, although further more work is needed to develop a practicable methodology.
