We're changing the characteristics of the surface of the land, the reflectivity.

(c) Albedo a measure of the reflectivity of an object which characterizes the optical visibility of an object

(d) Albedo a measure of the reflectivity of an object that characterizes the optical visibility of an object

Radar reflectivity is considerably increased in the presence of water, which has a dielectric constant greater than 10 times that of dry materials.

The central topics of this cruise will be (a) the acquisition and interpretation of acoustic reflectivity data (utilization of the side scan sonar function of modern swath sounding systems) (b) seafloor sampling for calibration and ground truthing of digital acoustic data and (c) the investigation of benthic communities (taxonomy, composition of assemblages, biodiversity).