The SANBOCIES project was developed within the 2014 call of the Strategic Grouping Oceanography-ECIMAT, under the Agreement established with the Department of Education and University Planning of the Xunta de Galicia for the financing of Research Centers. The project, in which the research groups of Geological and Biogeochemical Oceanography (XM1), Sedimentary Basin Analysis (XM3) and Physical Oceanography (GOFUVI), all of them from the University of Vigo, participated, aimed to characterize the emerged and submerged sedimentary bodies of the Cíes Islands Archipelago (Maritime-Terrestrial National Park of the Atlantic Islands of Galicia) after the last winter period (December 2013-February 2014). This period was characterized by a continuous succession of storm events.
To map the subtidal sandbanks, the two sidescan sonar recently acquired by ECIMAT (Yellowfin and Starfish) were used, from the “Kraken“, a vessel also belonging to this center; their setup for this type of work constituted an additional value for this project. The collection of these data was carried out during two campaigns, one in June and the other in October 2014.
The Yellowfin sonar survey covered the entire study area, while the Starfish sonar was used to show the detail of more superficial areas, since despite having a shorter range, it offers a higher resolution. The results obtained provided acoustic images of the seabed, and once the data from both sonar models were processed, the mosaics of the seabed acoustic record were obtained.
This information, together with bathymetric data, on which work is currently ongoing, will allow for greater knowledge of the sand bodies of the Cíes Islands and their evolution after storm episodes.
Yellowfin Starfish
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