The Nippon Foundation-GEBCO Seabed 2030 Project has signed an agreement with the UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO) to map the bottom of the ocean.
As part of its official partnership with Seabed 2030, the UKHO will provide bathymetric gridded map products to be used by the project within the General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans (GEBCO) gridded bathymetric data set. UKHO will also share and promote methods and best practices in technological innovation, infrastructure, and solutions for ocean mapping and bathymetric data management.
Seabed 2030 is a collaborative project between The Nippon Foundation and GEBCO with the goal of the complete mapping of the world’s oceans by 2030. The effort is also compiling all bathymetric data into the freely available GEBCO Ocean Map.
GEBCO is a joint program of the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC), and is the only organization with a mandate to map the entire ocean floor.
Commenting on the announcement, UKHO Chief Executive Peter Sparkes said:
“Today marks an important date in our partnership with Seabed 2030 as we initiate the release of identified data contributions to the project. As a world-leading centre for hydrography, we share the Seabed 2030 vision and believe that the full mapping of the world’s oceans is a key milestone in supporting safe, secure and thriving oceans.
“Knowing the depth of the seabed is of vital importance for navigation and coastal management. It is a fundamental parameter for understanding ocean circulation, tides, wave action, sediment transport, environmental change, underwater geo-hazards, cable and pipeline routing, and much more. High quality marine geospatial data will play an instrumental role in Seabed 2030, and we are delighted to actively support and contribute to the project’s mission.”
Seabed 2030 Project Director Jamie McMichael-Phillips added:
“We are delighted to further develop our partnership with the UKHO in support of producing the complete map of the ocean floor.
“With eight years left until the end of the decade and 80 per cent of the sea floor still to be mapped, UKHO’s data contribution and expertise on ocean mapping solutions will no doubt play a significant role in supporting Seabed 2030 realise its essential goal, for the benefit of humanity.”