A low cost Unmanned Surface Vehicle for mapping shallow-water UCH sites: Ancient and historical shipwrecks in Methoni bay, Greece

Vasileios Giannakopoulos, George Papatheodorou, Dimitris Christodoulou, Elias Fakiris, Maria Geraga, Panagiotis Gkionis, Nikos Mavrommatis, Thomas Levy

Abstract

Advancements in remote sensing technologies and marine robotics have revolutionized the surveying of underwater cultural heritage (UCH), surpassing the limitations of conventional means. In shallow water areas, Unmanned Surface Vessels (USVs) offer advantages over research vessels, such as extended autonomous operation, maneuverability, low power consumption, and reduced environmental impact. In this study, conducted at two wreck sites in Methoni Bay, Greece, an USV was employed, equipped with a side scan sonar system operating at frequencies of 455/800 kHz, which was integrated into the Lowrance Elite-7 Ti sonar device. The collected data sets were processed using ReefMaster and SeaView software to generate accurate mosaics for inspecting and mapping UCH sites. The aim of this work is to demonstrate the use of USVs as a viable method for investigating and documenting underwater cultural heritage sites situated in shallow water environments.

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IMEKO-MetroArchaeo-2023-168.pdf

DOI

10.21014/tc4-ARC-2023.168

IMEKO TC

TC4 - Measurement of Electrical Quantities

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