Bathymetry Mapping Services
Professional bathymetry mapping services using advanced drone-mounted LiDAR technology to deliver accurate underwater topography data. Our bathymetric survey solutions combine cutting-edge green laser technology with traditional hydrographic survey methods to map lakes, reservoirs, rivers, basins, coastal areas, and marine environments with unprecedented speed and accuracy.
Understanding Bathymetric Mapping and Hydrographic Surveys
Unlike traditional boat-based bathymetry services that require weeks of field work and expensive vessel mobilization, our drone bathymetric mapping approach completes surveys in days while maintaining survey-grade accuracy. We serve clients across California and the southwestern United States, providing bathymetric data for engineering, construction, environmental, and resource management applications.
Our team combines FAA-certified drone pilots with advanced data processing capabilities to deliver comprehensive underwater mapping solutions. Whether you need lake bathymetry for sediment analysis, reservoir capacity calculations for dam safety assessments, or coastal bathymetric data for marine construction projects, we provide the precision and reliability your project demands.
Diverse Applications
Revolutionary Drone-Based
Bathymetry Mapping Technology
How Bathymetric LiDAR Works
Bathymetric LiDAR technology employs green laser wavelengths (typically 532 nanometers) specifically designed to penetrate water surfaces and measure underwater topography. Unlike infrared lasers used in terrestrial LiDAR mapping that reflect off water surfaces, green laser light penetrates clear to moderately turbid water, allowing direct measurement of submerged terrain depths. Our drone-mounted bathymetric LiDAR systems emit thousands of laser pulses per second, capturing dense point clouds representing both water surface elevation and bottom topography simultaneously.
Complete bathymetric survey systems integrate multiple precision components including the green laser scanner, high-accuracy GPS receivers for positioning, inertial measurement units (IMU) for orientation tracking, RGB cameras for visual context, and sophisticated data logging equipment. RTK (Real-Time Kinematic) or PPK (Post-Processed Kinematic) GPS corrections ensure centimeter-level horizontal and vertical accuracy. The integration of these components, combined with rigorous calibration procedures, enables survey-grade bathymetric data suitable for engineering and regulatory applications.
Advantages Over Traditional Bathymetry Methods
Technical Capabilities and Performance
Key Technical Specifications
- Vertical accuracy: 2-10cm RMSE with ground control
- Horizontal accuracy: 3-10cm RMSE
- Water penetration: 1-50 meters (clarity dependent)
- Point density: 10-50 points per square meter
- Green laser wavelength: 532nm
- Pulse rate: Thousands per second
- Coverage: 50-300 acres per day
- RTK/PPK GPS: Centimeter-level positioning
Bathymetric Survey Methods Compared
Understanding the strengths and limitations of different bathymetry mapping technologies helps you select the optimal approach for your specific project requirements, water conditions, and budget constraints.
Drone LiDAR vs Single-Beam Echo Sounders
Multibeam echo sounders represent the gold standard for traditional bathymetric mapping, using hundreds of narrow acoustic beams to map seafloor topography in wide swaths. While multibeam systems excel for deep water ocean surveys and provide extremely high point density, they require expensive specialized vessels, experienced hydrographers, extensive mobilization logistics, and significant time investment. Drone bathymetric LiDAR offers comparable accuracy for shallow to moderate depth surveys while dramatically reducing survey time and costs. For water bodies under 30 meters depth and 500 acres area, drone bathymetry typically proves more efficient and economical than multibeam hydrographic surveys.
Drone Bathymetric LiDAR vs Multibeam Sonar
Single-beam echo sounders measure water depth along vessel track lines, requiring interpolation between tracks to create continuous bathymetric surfaces. This traditional bathymetry mapping method remains common for lake and reservoir surveys due to lower equipment costs compared to multibeam systems. However, single-beam surveys suffer from poor spatial coverage, requiring extensive vessel time for adequate point density, and produce lower accuracy results than modern alternatives. Drone bathymetric LiDAR captures full-coverage point clouds rather than interpolated surfaces, provides superior spatial resolution, requires less field time, and achieves better vertical accuracy than single-beam methods for comparable project costs.
Drone LiDAR vs Satellite-Derived Bathymetry
Satellite-derived bathymetry (SDB) uses optical satellite imagery to estimate water depth in shallow coastal areas, offering advantages for extremely large-area coverage without field operations. However, SDB accuracy typically ranges 30 centimeters to 2 meters at best, limiting applications to reconnaissance-level mapping. SDB also requires clear water, calm conditions, and works only in shallow depths typically under 20 meters. Drone bathymetric LiDAR provides 10-20 times better vertical accuracy, works in moderately turbid water, operates regardless of weather, and surveys deeper water than satellite methods. For projects requiring engineering-grade precision, drone bathymetry vastly outperforms satellite approaches.
For water bodies under 50 meters deep and under 500 acres area, drone bathymetry provides the optimal balance of speed, cost, accuracy, and accessibility.
Bathymetric Mapping Applications
Across Industries
Bathymetric LiDAR mapping solutions across diverse sectors and use cases
Professional Bathymetry
Mapping Workflow
Our comprehensive bathymetric survey process ensures high-quality data collection, rigorous quality control,
and professional deliverables that meet your project specifications and industry standards.
Project Assessment & Planning
Every bathymetric survey project begins with thorough assessment of site conditions, project requirements, and technical specifications. We evaluate water clarity using Secchi disk measurements or turbidity data to determine bathymetric LiDAR feasibility and expected penetration depth. Site access, airspace restrictions, and regulatory requirements receive careful review. Project planning establishes survey parameters including point density, accuracy targets, coordinate systems, vertical datums, and deliverable formats.
Day 1
Pre-Survey Preparation
Pre-survey activities ensure efficient field operations and high-quality results. FAA airspace authorizations are obtained for drone operations including LAANC approvals for controlled airspace and special waivers when necessary. Ground control points may be established using RTK GPS equipment to maximize bathymetric data accuracy. Equipment calibration procedures verify bathymetric LiDAR system performance, GPS accuracy, and IMU alignment. Weather monitoring identifies optimal survey windows with calm winds, minimal wave action, and favorable water clarity.
Days 1-3
Field Data Acquisition
Bathymetric LiDAR data acquisition employs systematic flight patterns optimized for full water body coverage and data quality. Our FAA-certified drone pilots execute planned flight missions while real-time monitoring verifies data quality and coverage completeness. Typical field operations for a 100-acre water body require 4-8 hours including setup, flights, and quality checks. Simultaneous RGB imagery capture provides visual context and helps identify features requiring special attention.
Days 2-4
Data Processing & Analysis
Post-processing transforms raw bathymetric LiDAR data into usable products through multiple sophisticated steps. Point cloud generation incorporates GPS and IMU data to precisely position each laser return. Water surface modeling separates surface returns from bottom returns enabling accurate depth calculation. Refraction correction accounts for light bending at the air-water interface. Bathymetric point classification identifies bottom returns, water column features, and potential outliers.
Days 3-10
Deliverable Production & Support
Final deliverable production creates standardized products meeting project specifications and industry standards. Bathymetric point clouds are provided in LAS/LAZ formats with appropriate classifications. Digital Bathymetric Models (DBM) at specified resolutions show underwater topography as continuous surfaces. Depth contour maps with customizable intervals provide traditional cartographic representation. Comprehensive technical reports document methodology, accuracy assessment results, and metadata.
Day 7+
Comprehensive Bathymetric
Data Products
Comprehensive Bathymetric Data Products
Every bathymetric survey includes comprehensive standard deliverables providing complete underwater topography documentation. Classified bathymetric point clouds contain all laser returns with appropriate classifications distinguishing bottom returns, water surface, and features. Digital Bathymetric Models (DBM) at specified resolution (typically 0.5-2 meter grid spacing) represent underwater topography as continuous elevation surfaces. Depth contour maps with customizable intervals (1-foot, 2-foot, 5-foot, etc.) provide traditional cartographic representation familiar to engineers and planners.
