Geophysical surveying and seismics try to infer the sub bottom shape of the earth using physical remote sensing techniques such as ground penetrating radars, sub bottom profilers and deep seismic systems. Using these sensors the geophysicist builds an image of the various layers of the bottom and studies where breaks and faults occur in the sub bottom structure. 

An important usage of this data is in mining & energy for determining possible locations of oil and gas reservoirs but also in construction & engineering to determine the stability of the bottom before installing constructions. A special field of geophysical surveying is UXO surveying where unexploded conventional ordnance is searched for before a construction project is executed. The same techniques are also used in defense and security in for example mine clearance surveys. Special additional techniques used in UXO surveying are magnetometer and side scan sonar. Finally, geophysical surveying is often used to detect objects in the bottom in cultural heritage. 

Soil mapping with drones

Soil mapping with drones

The Earth sciences sector is rapidly adopting UAVs. These two studies have explored combining a gamma-ray spectrometer with a drone to map soil properties. In the Earth sciences sector, sensors for me...

Latest Advances in Ground-probing Radar Technology

Latest Advances in Ground-probing Radar Technology

In this article, Craig Simmonds presents massive advances in ground-probing radar and discusses the journey of the technology over the past quarter of a century. He particularly highlights the major c...

Multi-sensor Cave Detection in Bulgaria

Multi-sensor Cave Detection in Bulgaria

Caves are important in a wide variety of fields, ranging from construction engineering to mineral exploration and archaeology. Despite the scientific importance of caves, geologists believe that only ...

Capturing the Arctic and Antarctic

Capturing the Arctic and Antarctic

Capturing and measuring the environment in the Arctic and Antarctic is a particularly challenging job. The area of interest is often covered by a thick blanket of snow and ice, while extreme temperatu...

Surveying the Tonga volcano eruption aftermath

Surveying the Tonga volcano eruption aftermath

The Tonga Eruption Seabed Mapping Project (TESMaP) is a collaborative mission to discover the undersea impacts of the January 2022 eruption of the Hunga-Tonga Hunga-Ha’apai volcano. Using their coll...

Surveying in the land of fire and ice

Surveying in the land of fire and ice

Geodesists and surveyors in Iceland face considerable challenges due to the deformation effects of earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and glaciers on the geodetic networks. This article provides insight ...

Developing the digital sub-surface model for Crossrail 2

Developing the digital sub-surface model for Crossrail 2

A 3D geological model has helped to save valuable time and millions of pounds for the Crossrail 2 railway project in London, UK, by identifying geological hazards along the route and informing the tun...

Digital Photogrammetric Workstations

Digital Photogrammetric Workstations

For over a century, images taken from above-ground platforms have been major data sources for topographic mapping, creation of base maps and many other uses. For the past decade or more, data has been...