| EM302 Water Column Sonar Data Collected During EX0903 |
| The exhaustive study of the U.S. data holdings pertinent to the formulation of U.S.
potential claims of an extended continental shelf under the United Nations Convention
of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) (Mayer, et al., 2002) did not identify this area as
one of the regions where new bathymetric surveys are needed. However, the ECS Task
Force considered the Mendocino Ridge might be a potential extension for the U.S. The
Mayer et al. (2002) report recommended that multibeam echosounder (MBES) data are
needed to rigorously define (1) the foot of the slope (FoS), a parameter of the two
UNCLOS-stipulated formula lines, and (2) the 2500-m isobath, a parameter of one of
the UNCLOS-stipulated cutoff lines. Both of these parameters, the first a precise
geodetic isobath and second a geomorphic zone, are used to define an extended continental
shelf claim. The Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping/Joint Hydrographic Center (CCOM/JHC)
of the University of New Hampshire was directed by the U.S. Congress, through funding
to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to conduct the
new surveys and archive the resultant data. |
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