This find is a great example of how our new technology is much more effective for providing data for the entire seafloor, rather than from point or line sampling. This area was previously surveyed with single beam technology. The wreck was missed because it laid between survey lines. Luckily, it is not a danger to navigation. Similar single beam or lead line technology surveys exist in shoaler waters which may contain similar undetected features.

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April 7, 2004 During a recent transit north from her home port in Norfolk, VA, NOAA ship RUDE discovered an uncharted wreck on the edge of a major ship traffic lane approaching New York. The wreck was found in 186 ft of water and is believed to be the remains of a demolished cargo vessel known as the IONNIS P. GOULANDRIS which sank in 1942. The discovery of this uncharted wreck highlights the advanced capabilities of NOAA's hydrographic survey fleet. Modern acoustic surveying techniques are capable of ensonifying large swaths of the seafloor at one time. Older techniques only allowed for acquiring soundings at discrete points or in widely-spaced linear arrays. Side-scan sonar systems ensonify the seafloor obliquely and detect the return of acoustic energy. Areas that are blocked from ensonification (e.g. behind a ship wreck) are known as acoustic shadows. This detailed image of the wreck was acquired with RUDE's Klein 5500 side-scan sonar system. This sun-illuminated Digital Terrain Model (DTM) was created from multibeam sonar data acquired with RUDE's Reson 8125 multibeam sonar system. The RUDE obtained a least depth of 152 ft on the wreck.

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