Scientists begin mapping of Crater Lake floor



by U. S. Geological Survey Volcano Hazards Program

release July 2000



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The bottom of Crater Lake, Oregon, in Crater Lake National Park, will get a 

thorough going over during the next two weeks, when scientists from the U.S. 

Geological Survey and the University of New Hampshire will map the lake’s 

bottom, using the latest multibeam sidescan sonar technology. Learn more about 

the survey and new images from the Crater Lake Data Clearinghouse and a USGS 

press release.



The multibeam sidescan sonar mapping began in late July to collect data from 

more than 50 million soundings. The survey will mark the first time that the 

entire bottom of the lake has been mapped using modern technology. The project 

is similar to the mapping of the bottom of Lake Tahoe, which the USGS conducted 

in August 1998. The digital maps of Lake Tahoe revealed a lake floor littered 

with the debris of ancient landslides and confirmed the presence of an active 

earthquake fault.



By mapping the floor of Crater Lake, USGS and other scientists hope the new, 

detailed, bathymetry study will shed light on certain submerged volcanic 

landforms and may even lead to the discovery of new vents. They also hope to 

find features that can help tell when the lake filled, relative to eruptions, 

provide more clues to the early eruptive history of Mount Mazama, and identify 

earthquake-triggered landslide deposits.