Kansas Lakes
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Researchers at the Kansas Biological Survey use state-of-the-art equipment to gather data on Kansas' shrinking water reservoirs, or man-made lakes.
Aired January 29, 2007
Transcript
When someone wanted to know how deep a lake was, they used to drop a weight or a pole down to the bottom to mearure it.With your Research Minute, I'm Brandis Griffith-Researchers at the University of Kansas are using a new state-of-the art Bathymetry system to measure the depth of Kansas lakes.
The sonar technology sends a sound wave to the bottom. Kansas Biological Survey researchers measure the time it takes for that sound to travel to the bottom and bounce back to the surface.
From that they calculate the depth of the lake.
“With our system, in about 2 hours, we can take 40,000 depth measurements of a 200 acre lake. 40,000 points that tells us how deep it is. So we can make extremely detailed maps of the lake bottom.”
What they've found is that Kansas lakes are filling in with sediment-leading to lower storage capacity and possibly taste and odor issues.
The Kansas Biological Survey is continuing research, so state and local agencies can use the information.
For more information log onto Research Minute DOT-K-U-DOT-E-D-U.
From the University of Kansas I'm Brandis Griffith.
Tell Me More
KU researchers say Kansas lakes are filling in and shrinking
LAWRENCE — Water reservoirs across Kansas are shrinking, leading to taste and odor problems in drinking water for some communities, according to a research program at the Kansas Biological Survey at the University of Kansas. Even more, the cost to remedy the problem could reach millions of dollars.
