Ground-Truth Area Selection and Characterization for Mine CountermeasuresTactical Environmental Data System

摘要

Three candidate sites were selected that are suitable as analogs for a variety offorward areas for Mine Countermeasures Tactical Environmental Data System development and testing. From an initial evaluation of 13 areas in U.S. waters and from comparison to certain forward areas, two sites (1) the Mississippi Gulf Coast/Chandeleur Island and (2) Key West, FL, and surrounding areas were chosen as the most suitable ground-truth areas. A third site, offshore of Panama City, FL, was added to take advantage of an ongoing research program, the Coastal Benthic Boundary Layer research program. For each of the three ground-truth areas, information presented includes: (1) a summary of salient characteristics, (2) a listing of existing data bases, and (3) an annotated bibliography.