Boat-towed Detectors Assist Researchers and Salvors

News Release JW Fishers Manufacturing Inc. August 31, 2012

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<DIV> A number of archaeological groups and
marine service companies are acquiring boat-towed metal detectors to assist in
locating shipwrecks and to perform geophysical surveys.  These
devices can locate a variety of targets including the piles of magnetic ballast
stones found on many old wrecks, gold and silver bars, cannons, anchors,
pipelines, cables, and various metal debris which must be removed from an area
before dredging. The two primary pieces of equipment used in these operations
are a magnetometer and pulse induction (PI) metal detectors. Magnetometers are
super sensitive instruments that can detect iron and steel objects at hundreds
of feet away. The boat-towed PI detectors locate all types of metals, while
ignoring the high mineralization in the ocean environment. 
   
Russell Bennett, an American living in Panama is helping the country’s
antiquities ministry (INAC) locate and map historic wreck sites in the city’s
old port area (circa 1720 - 1859). Before construction begins on a new causeway,
Panamanian officials want to know of any wrecks that may lie along the planned
route. Bennett has more than 20 years experience in mag surveys. Several of the
projects were Pro Bono, including the search for a downed aircraft along the
Darien
coast and helping hunt for a lost ship that sank in a storm near Punta Mala.
Using his JW Fisher Proton magnetometer Mr. Bennett and his assistants found
several sites of significance along the proposed path of the new causeway,
documented their positions, and gave the data to government authorities.

   
Dr. Phillip Lobel got his PhD at Harvard and teaches fish biology at
Boston
University.
His scientific work has focused on field studies of fish behavior and ecology.
For more than 20 years his main study area was Johnston
Attoll, a tiny island in the Pacific
Ocean 750
nautical miles from Hawaii.
This US
outpost was bombed by the Japanese shortly after Pearl
Harbor,
and during the 50s and 60s became a US
nuclear test site. In the 1980’s the island became a chemical weapons depot and
the site of the Johnston
Atoll Chemical Agent Disposal System (JACADS). Lobel conducted research for the
army as part of a marine ecological monitoring program. While conducting
magnetic survey operations around the island using a Fisher Proton magnetometer,
the professor and his team discovered the remains of an old military seaplane
and a whaling ship. 
  
Texas-based Terrasond provides hydrographic surveys, land surveys, and
geophysical surveys to clients worldwide. Their mission is to help customers
navigate safely, develop resources, and protect the environment by providing
information about the earth. Their team consists of hydrographers,
geophysicists, geologists, oceanographers, cartographers, GIS and CADD
specialists working with the company’s own vessels and equipment. Their clients
are in the oil and gas industries, power and telecon, as well as US and foreign
government agencies. Recently Terrasond was hired to survey a shallow water oil
field near Corpus
Christi
that was littered with debris. The equipment they were using for canal work was
not adequate for this type of project. To assist in the operation the company
acquired JW Fishers Pulse 12 boat-towed metal detector. With a range of 16 feet,
and the ability to detect both ferrous and nonferrous targets, the Pulse 12
could be towed far enough from the bottom to avoid obstacles and still detect
the debris that needed to be cleared from the area.  

  
Engwirda Marine in Queensland, Australia
provides clients with commercial diving and marine construction services. Their
extensive inventory of equipment includes a self propelled crane barge and a
Fisher Proton 4 magnetometer. The company was recently contracted to locate a
lost anchor from a very large coal ship.  Using their mag with
Fishers Tracker software, the search team was able to see on their laptop
computer the track of the boat as it moved over the search area, and capture
position coordinates of each mag readout. An altimeter attached to the belly of
the magnetometer allowed the team to see the distance between the towfish and
the bottom, ensuring the equipment was towed close enough to be effective, yet
far enough away to avoid collision with any obstructions. Managing director Jim
Engwirda reports it didn’t take long to find the missing
anchor.
  
Nixon Antony with Neel Underwater Services in Cochin,
India
says the Fisher Pulse 10 metal detector has been extremely useful in helping
them locate pipelines and cables which cross the area’s many waterways. The
recorded location of these lines is often inaccurate and their exact position
must be know before dredging or construction projects can be
undertaken.
  
A few more of the many agencies and companies using Fishers towed
detection systems are the US Army Corps of Engineers, Sitka Tribe of Alaska,
Williamson Marine Services in Hong Kong, the Royal Australian Navy, Diver Marine
Services in United Arab Emirates, India’s National Institute of Oceanography,
the Search & Rescue Society of British Columbia, Clive Cussler’s NUMA, Mel
Fisher’s Salvors Inc., Natural Resources Canada and Wahkiakum County Sheriff in
Washington State.
  
For more information on JW Fishers complete line of underwater search
equipment go to <A
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