METHOD OF DETERMINING SEA ICE DRAFT AND SYSTEM TO THIS END Russian patent published in 2012 - IPC G01S13/95 G01C21/00 

FIELD: process engineering.

SUBSTANCE: invention relates to marine hydrometeorology and may be used for determination of sea ice draft. Drifter equipped with transceivers of satellite communication and hydro acoustic navigation systems is used to define coordinates of ice fields. Displacement of ice field relative to reference points is tracked and displayed on monitor. Note here that potentially dangerous ice fields are revealed as well as approach distance and time store to make decision about their localisation. Said decision are made with due allowance of ice field thickness defined by sounding with the help of sonar mounted aboard the airship. Proposed system comprises drifter, producing offshore platform and sonar mounted on rigid-frame airship. Drifter is made up of telescopic cylindrical vessel made from Macrolon. Drifter top section accommodates aforesaid transceiver while it bottom section houses transceiver of hydro acoustic hardware. Said drifter operateds in ''call-reply'' mode and ''pinger'' mode (beacon). For reliable fixing of drifter in holes on ice surface, spacers made up of set of needle passages are made at top section of cylindrical vessel. Producing offshore platform is equipped with transceivers of aforesaid systems, antennas, navigation controller and software. Said sonar mounted aboard the airship serves to define ice field thickness.

EFFECT: expanded operating performances, higher reliability.

2 cl