A BATHYMETRIC AND GEOMORPHOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF CLAYTOR LAKE USING SONAR TECHNOLOGY

Claytor Dam was built in 1939 for generating hydroelectric power in the New River Valley near Radford, Virginia. Constructed as a concrete gravity dam, it is operated today by American Electric Power (AEP). Commissioned before the area had been mapped at the standard USGS 1:24,000 scale, no reliable topographic maps existed then, and few useful bathymetric maps exist today. Curious about the drowned geomorphic features, undergraduate students from Radford University chose to map and profile the lake bottom as an independent study research project. Anticipated features included submerged terraces, a flood plain, point bars, levees, cut banks, and the thalweg of the drowned river channel. Using a Humminbird Model 998c SI Combo Side Imaging Sonar and External GPS combo attached to a pontoon boat, we created grid lines crossing the lake horizontally and cruised at speeds averaging 3.8mph. Our data met the international standards set in place by the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration (NOAA) of five sonar pings per meter to ensure a compliant model. Data collected was uploaded to an AutoChart Zero Line map of North American waterways to create both 2D and 3D models of the submerged topography. KML files were generated so that these models can be uploaded to Google Earth and ArcGIS and visualized in comparison to surrounding landscape features. Geomorphic analogs to features along the New River that are not submerged at the Radford University campus were discovered in the data sets. Those include terraces, cut banks, flood plains and gorge-like tributaries. The final data set will be distributed to the “Friends of Claytor Lake” citizens group, Claytor Lake State Park, and to boat rental shops on the lake, to inform anyone who wishes to use the bathymetric information produced.