NetSurvey Dover Strait Westbound TSS Exit Survey

Contracted by NetSurvey to provide specialist multibeam personnel onboard MV Seabeam for the MCA Dover Strait Westbound TSS Exit Survey. Conducted as part of the Civil Hydrography Programme, this large 540 square kilometre survey area is on the south coast of England, immediately south of Brighton. Located at the end of the Dover Strait Traffic Separation Scheme, this is one of the busiest international seaways in the world, regularly used by over 400 commercial vessels daily. The passage of ships through the Dover Strait is further complicated by the presence of strong tides, sandbanks, shoals and a great deal of concentrated cross-channel traffic. Weather conditions in the Strait are liable to rapid change. Even in comparatively light winds, the strong tides can give rise to rough seas with steep breaking waves. Visibility is often poor, changing quickly to dense fog, even in strong or gale-force winds, rendering navigation difficult. All of this combines to make this one of the most challenging areas in which to conduct a hydrographic survey.