| This exercise allowed up to do "physical limnology," in other words study the overall morphology and characteristics of a water body. Specifically, we created a bathymetric map for the Field Station pond. The map is like an underwater topographic map, showing contour lines of equal depth. The map is based on an aerial photo (used as a base map), and soundings (depth readings) are taken from a boat at regular intervals. |
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| The bathymetric map is useful in a variety of contexts. It allows ongoing research: the map allows one to sample from a known depth, for example. It can also be used for calcualtion of surface area and volume (whole pond or any desired depth). |
The resulting information was used to complete a problem set, demonstrating the utility of the information and allowing students to demonstrate quantitative thinking and problem solving.
This page prepared by Paul Weihe. Last modified 19 Oct. 2001.