WARWICK – A new crowdsourced bathymetry database launched this month by FarSounder Inc. will facilitate seafloor and ocean mapping initiatives while allowing vessel operators to visualize their data contributions.
This database, known as the CSB Data Explorer Platform, provides a dashboard view of crowdsourced vessel locations throughout the world.
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The visual “not only allows contributors to better understand where and how much they have donated, but it also facilitates the recruitment of other contributors via streamlined functionality to share their stats on social media,” FarSounder said in a statement. “Additionally, in an effort to provide additional motivation through gamification, contributors can compare their contributions to the overall FarSounder fleet’s contributions and view the entire International Hydrographic Organization’s (IHO) CSB database on top of a global map.”
FarSounder has facilitated bathymetric data mapping initiatives for more than six years, company CEO Matthew Zimmerman says, and created the dashboard through customer donations and advances in software capabilities.
The Warwick-based marine technology company launched the dashboard in partnership with The International SeaKeepers Society, the International Hydrographic Organizaiton and The Nippon Foundation-GEBCO Seabed 2030 Project. GEBCO stands for General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans.
In a statement, Seabed 2030 Project Director Jamie McMichael-Phillips said that the database brings “us significantly closer to our goal of achieving a complete map of the ocean floor, which is beneficial for a whole host of reasons, including empowering the world to make policy decisions, manage the ocean sustainably and undertake scientific research.
“Every contribution, no matter how small, is invaluable in bringing us one step closer to a fully mapped seabed,” McMichael-Phillips said.
Gill Rodrigues, director of international partnerships at SeaKeepers Society, said the database “empowers contributors to see the real-world impact of their data, fostering a sense of community and shared purpose in our quest to understand and protect our oceans.”
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Voghel@PBN.com.
