and use of hydrographic data. The system will be comprised of new 

 high-speed boats, helicopters equipped with laser depth sounders 

 and backed up with a photographic capability, a buoy-employed 

 navigational system, and an automated cartographic system 

 onboard a mother survey ship. Control will be maintained through a 

 telemetry subsystem. HYSURCH will be able to survey and provide 

 charts of a 70- by 15-nautical-mile area on board, in about 16 days, 

 but usable hydrographic data can be developed in 24 hours. A coastal 

 site test of most component systems is scheduled to be conducted in 

 mid-1974. This will be followed by installation and testing in a 

 hydrographic survey ship in mid-1975. The helicopter-borne laser 

 depth sounder should be ready for test by 1977 



Another continuing R&D project is aimed at automating the 

 cartographic capabilities of theDMAHC. In order to be responsive to 

 increasing demands for new MC&G graphical and digital products 

 and at the same time reduce costs, DMA must develop automated 

 cartographic equipment and procedures at the earliest possible date. 

 Initial capability is expected at DMAHC in July 1974, and by 1977, a 

 full capability will be developed. The work is scheduled in two 

 phases. The first involves lineal digitizing or line following 

 techniques to extract charting information from hard copy 

 photographs or charts, followed by formatting, editing, and printing 

 out the information in a form ready for publication. While this phase 

 facilitates plotting and data bank storage and retrieval, its manual 

 operations are time consuming. For example, lineal digitization of 

 the planimetry of a 1:50,000 line scale chart requires approximately 

 80 manhours. The second phase uses raster or video scanning 

 technology to translate graphic data to digital data and to drum plot 

 digital MC&G data back into finished charts. The computer 

 programs are complex and the software is still being designed, but a 

 measure of its advantage is that it will take 30 minutes to do the job 

 that required 80 hours in the first phase. 



Hydrographic and geophysical (gravity and magnetic] surveys of 

 deep ocean and worldwide coastal areas are performed by the U.S. 

 Naval Oceanographic Office (NAVOCEANO) in support of DMA 

 data requirements for nautical charting programs. Deep ocean 

 bathymetric and geophysical surveys are conducted on board four 

 deep ocean hydrographic survey ships. Two coastal hydrographic 

 survey ships, USNS Chau venet and USNS Harkness, and the Project 

 MAGNET aircraft are also platforms dedicated to conducting 

 worldwide hydrographic, geophysical, and magnetic survey work. 

 In FY '73 over 200,000 track miles of precision bathymetric, gravity, 

 and magnetic survey lines were run, and 143 special bathymetric 

 maps were produced. In FY '74 225,000 miles of lines will be run, 170 

 maps will be produced. In FY '73 OMEGA and LORANC 



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