High resolution 3-D underwater imaging

A Streak Tube Imaging Lidar (STIL) system. has recently demonstrated high resolution three dimensional imaging in ocean water. Lateral resolution of better than 1/2 inch has been obtained through 36 feet of ocean water, with range resolutions of better than 1 inch. The resulting three dimensional data may be processed for imaging of floating, moored, and bottom objects. processed results include both conventional contrast maps of bottom targets, as well as range maps which represent the height of the object above the surrounding bottom. Data analysis and modeling was performed to process and interpret the resulting high resolution 3-D images. This paper describes the concept, design, implementation, and performance of STIL for ocean imaging, and discusses applications of this high resolution 3-D imaging capability to ocean surveillance.