Evaluation of sonar and video data collection efforts in an under-ice environment using an unmanned underwater vehicle

Underwater environments hidden beneath a layer of ice prove challenging to explore for both humans and unmanned underwater vehicles. Exploration of such areas is a topic of interest to many scientific communities. In this paper, we discuss details on the approach taken to obtain sonar and video data of under ice topography in a Colorado mountain lake using a VideoRay Pro IV unmanned underwater vehicle. Video from the vehicle along with acoustic sonar data from a BlueView forward looking sonar sensor were recorded concurrently for use in future research. The approach taken, challenges encountered, results obtained, and lessons learned during the data collection process are described herein.