Editing Side-scan sonar (section)

==How it works==
Side-scan uses a sonar device that emits conical or fan-shaped pulses down toward the seafloor across a wide angle perpendicular to the path of the sensor through the water, which may be towed from a surface vessel or [[submarine]] (called a “towfish”), or mounted on the ship's [[hull (watercraft)|hull]].  The intensity of the [[acoustics|acoustic]] reflections from the seafloor of this fan-shaped [[light beam|beam]] is recorded in a series of cross-track slices.  When stitched together along the direction of motion, these slices form an image of the sea bottom within the swath (coverage width) of the beam. <ref>{{Cite web |title=A Smooth Operator's Guide to Underwater Sonars and Acoustic Devices |url=https://bluerobotics.com/learn/a-smooth-operators-guide-to-underwater-sonars-and-acoustic-devices/ |access-date=2024-01-18 |website=Blue Robotics |language=en-US}}</ref> The sound [[frequency|frequencies]] used in side-scan sonar usually range from 100 to 500 [[kilohertz|kHz]]; higher frequencies yield better [[Temporal resolution|resolution]] but less range.