Underwater City in 3-D
Entombed in a watery grave for thousands of years, a submerged Greek city is finally taking shape in new 3-D images (including the one at left). Developed by a team from the Australian Centre for Field Robotics at the University of Sydney, the mapping project won first prize in Canon Australia's 2011 Extreme Imaging competition.
Student Ariell Friedman and colleagues deployed a camera-equipped diver (right) to take images of Pavlopetri, which is located in 13-foot-deep (4-meter-deep) waters off the coast of southern Greece. The city is thought to have sunk some 3,000 years ago, perhaps due to an earthquake.
Using new software and the diver data, the scientists rapidly produced 3-D maps of the ancient site, the oldest known submerged city site.
Intended for students, the Extreme Imaging competition "aims to promote and celebrate local research at the intersection of imaging and technology," according to Canon Australia, which runs the competition along with the company's Australian research center, CiSRA.
"The competition recognises local advances in imaging science, and recognises projects where students create equipment that can produce images beyond the boundaries of creative photography and video," Stephen Hardy, senior general manager for CiSRA, said in a statement.
Extreme Scientific Imaging: Best of 2011 Named
An underwater city in 3-D and the sharpest picture of an atom yet are among winners of the 2011 Australian Extreme Imaging competition.
