Hydro International Columns

The International Hydrographic Organisation (IHO) and the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) are co-operating very closely to take appropriate action for the mandatory carriage of ECDIS to incr...

The existence of Web-based Geographic Information System (Web-based GIS) will enable the Hydrographic Information System to integrate all the activities of a Hydrographic Office on a single integrated...

There are three new elements of hydrographic importance contained in Chapter V of SOLAS which will increase safety at sea; the provision of hydrographic services, the definition of nautical charts and...

It is clear Geographical Information Systems (GIS) are providing added value business solutions in the wider geomatics world; this may be seen reading the many articles in the Geomatics Information Ma...

GOMaP, the Global Ocean Mapping Project, was a plan to methodically map all the world's oceans by multi-beam sonar. It may be stalled, but swath mapping of the oceans is certainly proceeding at a bris...

As I sit down to write this periodic column, I am reminded of the story of the grizzled old retired fisherman sitting in a waterfront tavern. It is a dreadful night, rain pouring down, a storm howling...

Some twenty years ago I was involved in a re-survey of Doubtful Sound, in the isolated Fiordland area of New Zealand. The existing chart dated from 1851 but was adequate for the small fishing vessels ...

Over the last few years it has become apparent to many in our profession that some form of recognised formal career development, above and beyond an initial degree or course of study, is becoming more...

The catastrophic events following the Asian tsunami last Christmas have captured the world's attention. Governments and agencies are rushing to introduce a tsunami warning system mirroring the excelle...

New Zealand is an island nation isolated in a huge ocean. To place it in context, we have a land mass roughly the size of Italy, a population of four million and the distance from Auckland to Sydney a...

As most readers will know, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) stipulates that information on the limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines ...

Hydrographic surveys may be specified to meet many different requirements. For example, a survey may be for nautical charting to re-survey a shipping channel where under-keel clearance is critical, or...

The link between the development of a State and its trade was identified centuries ago. In spite of the efforts of countless projects, the awareness of the importance of charts and maritime safety inf...

In April this year I represented the South West Pacific Hydrographic Commission (SWPHC) at the eleventh meeting of the Pacific Islands Maritime Association and the first Meeting of Pacific Minsters of...

The availability of various sensors and sophisticated technology providing digital data means that today’s hydrographers must attune to the idea that the final products should be available in a hydr...