RAFA08012_BOTPHOTOS: Location of Sea-Floor Photographs Acquired During U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Cruise 08012 (RAFA08012) in the Vicinity of Edgartown Harbor, Offshore Massachusetts (Geographic)

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Frequently-anticipated questions:

What does this data set describe?

Title:
RAFA08012_BOTPHOTOS: Location of Sea-Floor Photographs Acquired During U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Cruise 08012 (RAFA08012) in the Vicinity of Edgartown Harbor, Offshore Massachusetts (Geographic)
Abstract:
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (MA CZM), is producing detailed geologic maps of the coastal sea floor. Imagery, originally collected by NOAA for charting purposes, provides a fundamental framework for research and management activities along this part of the Massachusetts coastline, shows the composition and terrain of the seabed, and provides information on sediment transport and benthic habitat. Interpretive data layers were derived from the combined single-beam and multibeam echo-sounder data and sidescan-sonar data collected in the vicinity of Edgartown Harbor, Massachusetts. During August 2008 seismic-reflection profiles (Boomer and Chirp) were acquired, and during September 2008 bottom photographs and surficial sediment data were acquired as part of two ground-truth reconnaissance surveys.
  1. How should this data set be cited?

    Poppe, Larry, 2009, RAFA08012_BOTPHOTOS: Location of Sea-Floor Photographs Acquired During U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Cruise 08012 (RAFA08012) in the Vicinity of Edgartown Harbor, Offshore Massachusetts (Geographic): Open-File Report 2009-1001, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, USGS Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

    This is part of the following larger work.

    Poppe, L.J., McMullen, K.Y., Foster, D.S., Blackwood, D.S., Williams, S.J., Ackerman, S.D., Moser, M.S., and Glomb, K.A., 2010, Geological Interpretation of the Sea Floor Offshore of Edgartown, Massachusetts: Open-File Report 2009-1001, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, USGS Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details: 1 DVD-ROM

  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?

    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -70.548900
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -70.440133
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 41.439350
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 41.387533

  3. What does it look like?

    <https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2009/1001/data/botphotos/rafa08012_botphotos.gif> (GIF)
    Thumbnail image showing location and extent of bottom photo locations in the vicinity of Edgartown Harbor, Massachusetts

  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?

    Beginning_Date: 08-Sep-2008
    Ending_Date: 09-Sep-2008
    Currentness_Reference: ground condition

  5. What is the general form of this data set?

    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: vector digital data

  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?

    1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?

      This is a Vector data set. It contains the following vector data types (SDTS terminology):

      • Entity point (160)

    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?

      Horizontal positions are specified in geographic coordinates, that is, latitude and longitude. Latitudes are given to the nearest 0.000001. Longitudes are given to the nearest 0.000001. Latitude and longitude values are specified in Decimal degrees.

      The horizontal datum used is D_WGS_1984.
      The ellipsoid used is WGS84.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.000000.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/294.257222.

  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

    rafa08012_botphotos
    Shapefile Attribute Table (Source: ESRI)

    FID
    Internal feature number. (Source: ESRI)

    Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.

    Shape
    Feature geometry. (Source: ESRI)

    Coordinates defining the features.

    STATION
    Sequential identifier assigned to each sample site (Source: USGS)

    Characters and numerics identifying sampling sites

    PHOTO
    Sequential identifier assigned to each photograph (Source: USGS)

    Characters and numerics identifying photos

    DATE
    Month, day, and year when the photograph was taken (Source: USGS)

    Character String: Months, days, and year as m/d/yyyy

    LATITUDE
    Latitude coordinate of photo location, WGS84 (Source: USGS)

    Range of values
    Minimum: 41.387533
    Maximum: 41.439350
    Units: Decimal degrees
    Resolution: 0.000001

    LONGITUDE
    Longitude coordinate of photo location, WGS84 (Source: USGS)

    Range of values
    Minimum: -70.548900
    Maximum: -70.440133
    Units: Decimal degrees
    Resolution: 0.000001

    DEVICE
    Equipment used to collect the photograph (Source: USGS)

    Value Definition
    SMALL SEABOSS GRAB USGS Small Seabed Observation and Sampling System (SEABOSS)

    CRUISEID
    Cruise identifier (Source: USGS)

    Value Definition
    RAFA08012 Ship and field activity serial number assigned by Woods Hole Science Center data archives

    PROJECTID
    Name of project for which the photographs were taken. (Source: USGS)

    Value Definition
    EDGARTOWN HARBOR Project name assigned by Woods Hole Science Center data archives

    PRINCIPAL
    Name of Chief scientist during the cruise (Source: USGS)

    Value Definition
    LPOPPE Larry Poppe

    Entity_and_Attribute_Overview:
    Data layer attributes include date, time and position photograph was acquired; station and photograph identifiers.

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)

  2. Who also contributed to the data set?

  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?

    Larry Poppe
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543-1598
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2314 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    lpoppe@usgs.gov

Why was the data set created?

The purpose of this dataset is to release the locations and identifiers of 161 bottom photographs collected at 37 stations on topographic and backscatter data of the sea floor in the vicinity of Edgartown Harbor, offshore Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. The photos were collected with a modified Van Veen grab sampler modified to carry still and video camera systems (small SEABOSS) during USGS survey 08012, conducted September 8-9, 2008.

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?

    (source 1 of 1)

  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?

    Date: 2008 (process 1 of 2)
    Navigation and time recorded on videotape and in cruise logs were used to identify and register the still photographs. This information was input into an Excel (.xls) file and exported to create an ASCII file of this information. Shapefiles were created in ArcView 3.3 from the ASCII comma-delimited files.

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Larry Poppe
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543-1598
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2314 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    lpoppe@usgs.gov

    Data sources used in this process:
    • rafa08012_botphotos.xls
    • rafa08012_botphotos.txt

    Data sources produced in this process:

    • rafa08012_botphotos.shp

    Date: 2008 (process 2 of 2)
    ArcGIS 9.2 was used to define the projection of the ESRI shapefile.

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Larry Poppe
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543
    USA

    508-548-8700 x2314 (voice)
    508-457-2310 (FAX)
    lpoppe@usgs.gov

    Data sources used in this process:
    • rafa08012_botphotos.shp

    Data sources produced in this process:

    • rafa08012_botphotos.prj

  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?

    Blackwood, D., and Parolski, K., 2001, Seabed Observation and Sampling System: Sea Technology v. 42, no. 2, p. 39-43.

    Poppe, L.J., Ackerman, S.D., Foster, D.S., Blackwood, D.S., Butman, B., Moser, M.S., and Stewart, H.F., 2007, Sea-floor character and sedimentary processes of Quicks Hole, Elizabeth Islands, Massachusetts: Open-File Report 2006-1357, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

    Poppe, L.J., Ackerman, S.D., Foster, D.S., Blackwood, D.S., Williams, S.J., Moser, M.S., Stewart, H.F., and Glomb, K.A., 2007, Sea-floor character and sedimentary processes of Great Round Shoal Channel, offshore Massachusetts: Open-File Report 2007-1138, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details:
    Poppe, L.J., Ackerman, S.D., Foster, D.S., Blackwood, D.S., Williams, S.J., Moser, M.S., Stewart, H.F., and Glomb, K.A.
    Poppe, L.J., McMullen, K.Y., Foster, D.S., Blackwood, D.S., Williams, S.J., Ackerman, S.D., Barnum, S.R., and Brennan, R.T., 2008, Sea-floor character and sedimentary processes in the vicinity of Woods Hole, Massachusetts: Open-File Report 2008-1004, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

  1. How well have the observations been checked?

    All attributes were checked in a consistent manner

  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?

    Navigation was by differential GPS. Although GPS gave the ship's position rather than that of the SEABOSS, water depths were generally shallow and scope of the cable minimal. Therefore, SEABOSS offset from the antenna was less than 5 m.

  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?

  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?

    Locations of all still photographs of the sea floor collected during the R/V RAFAEL cruise 08012 were included in this data set.

  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?

    No additional checks for topological consistency were performed on this data.

How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?

Access_Constraints: None
Use_Constraints:
Public domain data from the U.S. government are freely redistributable with proper metadata and source attribution. Please recognize the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) as the source of this information.

  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 3)

    Larry Poppe
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543-1598
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2314 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    lpoppe@usgs.gov

  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

    Downloadable Data

  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

    Neither the U.S. Government, the Department of the Interior, nor the USGS, nor the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), nor any of their employees, contractors, or subcontractors, make any warranty, express or implied, nor assume any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, nor represent that its use would not infringe on privately owned rights. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by the USGS or NOAA in the use of these data or related materials. Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

  4. How can I download or order the data?

  5. What hardware or software do I need in order to use the data set?

    These data are available in Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) shapefile format. The user must have ArcGIS or ArcView 3.0 or greater software to read and process the data file. In lieu of ArcView or ArcGIS, the user may utilize another GIS application package capable of importing data. A free data viewer, ArcExplorer, capable of displaying the data is available from ESRI at www.esri.com. The user must have software capable of uncompressing archived zip files, such as Winzip or Pkware.

  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 2 of 3)

    Larry Poppe
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543-1598

    508-548-8700 x2314 (voice)
    508-457-2310 (FAX)
    lpoppe@usgs.gov

  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

    Downloadable Data

  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

    Neither the U.S. Government, the Department of the Interior, nor the USGS, nor the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), nor any of their employees, contractors, or subcontractors, make any warranty, express or implied, nor assume any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, nor represent that its use would not infringe on privately owned rights. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by the USGS or NOAA in the use of these data or related materials. Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

  4. How can I download or order the data?

  5. What hardware or software do I need in order to use the data set?

    These data are available as a generic ASCII formatted text file. The user must have a software program capable of reading the comma-delimited data file.

  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 3 of 3)

    Larry Poppe
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543
    USA

    508-548-8700 x2314 (voice)
    508-457-2310 (FAX)
    lpoppe@usgs.gov

  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

    Downloadable Data

  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

    Neither the U.S. Government, the Department of the Interior, nor the USGS, nor the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), nor any of their employees, contractors, or subcontractors, make any warranty, express or implied, nor assume any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, nor represent that its use would not infringe on privately owned rights. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by the USGS or NOAA in the use of these data or related materials. Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

  4. How can I download or order the data?

  5. What hardware or software do I need in order to use the data set?

    These data are available as an Excel formatted (.xls) file. The user must have a software program capable of reading Excel files.

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 31-Aug-2009
Metadata author:
Larry Poppe
U.S. Geological Survey
Geologist
384 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole, MA 02543-1598
USA

(508) 548-8700 x2314 (voice)
(508) 457-2310 (FAX)
lpoppe@usgs.gov

Metadata standard:
FGDC Content Standards for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)
Metadata extensions used:

Generated by mp version 2.9.6 on Mon Aug 31 10:57:35 2009