Quantitative Analyses of Morphological Data

Abstract

Submarine morphologies are complex and analysed based on shapes, dimensions and internal variations. They are also analysed based on their surroundings. This chapter starts by comparing the sensors providing this information: most of them are based on remote sensing (acoustic/electromagnetic). They produce Digital Terrain Models (DTMs), corresponding to regularly sampled (and/or interpolated) grids. Illustrated with regular examples, the chapter shows the basic measurements used to describe and compare morphologic data, their variations with multi-scale approaches (e.g. Fourier space, fractals) and how this can be used to identify trends and patterns. Geographic Information Systems and the emerging applications of Artificial Intelligence and data mining are also presented.