bathymetry
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CT: The term “bathymetry” originally referred to the ocean’s depth relative to sea level, although it has come to mean “submarine topography,” or the depths and shapes of underwater terrain.
In the same way that topographic maps represent the three-dimensional features (or relief) of overland terrain, bathymetric maps illustrate the land that lies underwater. Variations in sea-floor relief may be depicted by color and contour lines called depth contours or isobaths.
Bathymetry is the foundation of the science of hydrography, which measures the physical features of a water body. Hydrography includes not only bathymetry, but also the shape and features of the shoreline; the characteristics of tides, currents, and waves; and the physical and chemical properties of the water itself.

S: NOS – http://goo.gl/s1ljQP (last access: 14 November 2014)

N: 1. The term “bathymetry” originally referred to the ocean’s depth relative to sea level, although it has come to mean “submarine topography,” or the depths and shapes of underwater terrain.
2. Tedious and frequently inaccurate, this method yielded the depth at only a single point rather than a continuous measurement.
3. Inaccuracies arose because the rope did not necessarily travel straight to the bottom but instead might be deflected by subsurface currents or movements of the vessel.
4. Bathymetry: term used at Natural Resources Canada – Earth Sciences Sector.

S: 1, 2 & 3 – EncBrit – http://goo.gl/d0V1wO (last access: 18 November 2014). 4. TERMIUM PLUS (last access: 14 November 2014).

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CR: ocean wave energy