Detection and classification of subsurface objects in a marine environment by the use of a lidar system

The current problem of detecting objects located within a body of water is overcome by the use of a gated lidar system. Due to variation of suspended particulate matter within a body of water, normal visible video reconnaissance has proven to be highly unreliable. By using nanosecond short pulsed, low repetition rate blue-green laser signals that are exclusively tuned for specific water conditions, lidar systems are capable of reproducing clear images from oceanic surface to significant depths. One of the major advantages of gated lidar is that back scatter from layers above and below the region to be searched is basically reduced to zero. This discrimination in layer searching greatly increase the signal to noise ratio of the system, substantially increasing the likelihood of target recognition. Lidar systems have been successfully used for numerous military applications, studying of marine life forms, and oil spill detection and classification. Lidar systems are light weight with low power consumption and can be operated by personnel with minimal instruction