From Idea to Artifact: Magnetic Sensing Technology for the Detection and Location of Manmade Targets in Marine Environments

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "Needle, Meet Haystack: The Role of Magnetometers in Underwater Archaeological Research and the Evolution of Interpreting Magnetic Data for Cultural Resource Investigations", at the 2024 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

Magnetic sensors continue to be primary tools for the detection and mapping of near-surface manmade objects, as they have a unique ability to detect items that are buried, and that would otherwise be missed by acoustic or visual methods. Magnetic sensing technology and data processing have advanced rapidly in recent years. Smaller, lighter multi-sensor gradiometers make higher-resolution survey possible with smaller vessels. Underwater Autonomous Vehicles can cover area faster and with greater precision. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles can survey in difficult areas such as surf zones that were previously inaccessible. New data processing software makes magnetic mapping more easily accessible than ever. And a compact diver-held gradiometer device allows divers to locate targets that were previously invisible. Results are presented to illustrate how these new technologies work together to act as a start-to-finish solution in the search for manmade objects, such as archaeological remains, or Explosive Remnants of War (ERW).

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for Historical Archaeology 2024   •
• Needle, Meet Haystack: The Role of Magnetometers in Underwater Archaeological Research and the Evolution of Interpreting Magnetic Data for Cultural Resource Investigations

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Nicole Haddow