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Do you think we will discover some frequency of light that will let us map the ocean floors as you imagine?

netcraft 4y ago
AFAIK there are no frequencies of the electromagnetic spectrum we are not aware of, but our techniques and signal processing can potentially improve. There are also frequencies of waves other than light that we can use, such as sonar - but not from a satellite of course.
- edgyquant 4y ago
  > there are no frequencies of the electromagnetic spectrum we are not aware of, How would we know if we aren’t aware of them though?
  - hammyhavoc 4y ago
    Well, where would these hypothetical frequencies exist in the spectrum?
daveslash 4y ago
It's not really about the frequency of light. We pretty much have "discovered" all frequencies -- it's the electromagnetic spectrum. We know all of the frequencies that exist. The trick is devising new methods with increasingly sensitive instrumentation. This article talks about how researchers looked at measurements taken from space to gauge where the sea level was a mere few-centimeters higher than the surrounding area! Incredible! In theory, I could have seen someone like Arthur C. Clarke proposing this half a century ago - but with the precision in instrumentation only becoming available today, the idea could have been proposed long before the technology existed. In the future, might we devise a method and accompanying instrumentation that will allow us to map the sea floor with just a regular flash light hung from a ship? Maybe (but probably not). Point being: It's the methodology + instrumentation, not the frequency of light itself.
- dr_dshiv 4y ago
  My wording was off. It is not trivial to measure or generate each frequency of light! So, new technologies that could enable satellite-based mapping of the sea floor would likely rely on the development of frequency specific sensors. And, as was pointed out, perhaps new ways of measuring and generating specific frequencies of audio.
c_o_n_v_e_x 4y ago
Gravity is already used for mapping and for oil exploration. I dont know all of the details but there are quantum gravity sensors that are meant to be very accurate, which I assume could be used for mapping.
pajko 4y ago
Sea floor is usually mapped in the audio spectrum: https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/lewis_clark01/background/seafloormapping/seafloormapping.html https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/lewis_clark01/ba...

AFAIK there are no frequencies of the electromagnetic spectrum we are not aware of, but our techniques and signal processing can potentially improve. There are also frequencies of waves other than light that we can use, such as sonar - but not from a satellite of course.

edgyquant 4y ago
> there are no frequencies of the electromagnetic spectrum we are not aware of, How would we know if we aren’t aware of them though?
- hammyhavoc 4y ago
  Well, where would these hypothetical frequencies exist in the spectrum?

daveslash 4y ago

It's not really about the frequency of light. We pretty much have "discovered" all frequencies -- it's the electromagnetic spectrum. We know all of the frequencies that exist. The trick is devising new methods with increasingly sensitive instrumentation. This article talks about how researchers looked at measurements taken from space to gauge where the sea level was a mere few-centimeters higher than the surrounding area! Incredible! In theory, I could have seen someone like Arthur C. Clarke proposing this half a century ago - but with the precision in instrumentation only becoming available today, the idea could have been proposed long before the technology existed. In the future, might we devise a method and accompanying instrumentation that will allow us to map the sea floor with just a regular flash light hung from a ship? Maybe (but probably not). Point being: It's the methodology + instrumentation, not the frequency of light itself.

dr_dshiv 4y ago
My wording was off. It is not trivial to measure or generate each frequency of light! So, new technologies that could enable satellite-based mapping of the sea floor would likely rely on the development of frequency specific sensors. And, as was pointed out, perhaps new ways of measuring and generating specific frequencies of audio.

c_o_n_v_e_x 4y ago

Gravity is already used for mapping and for oil exploration. I dont know all of the details but there are quantum gravity sensors that are meant to be very accurate, which I assume could be used for mapping.

pajko 4y ago

Sea floor is usually mapped in the audio spectrum: https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/lewis_clark01/background/seafloormapping/seafloormapping.html https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/lewis_clark01/ba...