DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT OF A WEB-BASED PLATFORM FOR THE MODELLING AND VISUALIZATION OF BATHYMETRIC DATA

Bathymetric exploration plays a crucial role in the development of the blue economy, which encompasses sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and ocean ecosystem health. Bathymetric data collected using sonar systems are usually represented as bathymetric charts. The interactive visualization of bathymetric data is essential for understanding underwater terrain features and their spatial distribution. This paper outlines the design and development of an interactive web-based platform for bathymetric surface model generation from XYZ point sonar data of entire coastal Kerala. The platform also facilitates orthographic and perspective visualization of surface models. Several functionalities such as profiling and volumetric change analysis were developed. PostgreSQL with a spatial extension was used to store the bathymetric data. The back-end computing was achieved using python flask. The front-end was implemented using web technologies such as HTML, CSS and JavaScript. The integration between the front-end, back-end and the database was achieved through RESTful APIs. This web-based platform provides a comprehensive and up-to-date information on bathymetric survey charts published by Hydrographic Survey Wing. This portal allows the user to search and view bathymetric visualization overlaid on a map and details of coastal features, Tide, Water quality parameters and coastal protection structures. This portal facilitates decision making in coastal engineering, environmental monitoring, coastal zone management, navigation safety and marine habitat mapping, etc.