A seismic beamforming approach for the detection of boulders in the shallow sub-seafloor

Detailed knowledge of the seafloor and the shallow sub-seafloor is required to plan and construct offshore infrastructure such as windfarms. A considerable effort is made for such pre-construction surveys in the form of geophysical measurements (mostly seismic/acoustic and magnetic), coring activity and geotechnical testing. Modern wind turbines are installed on foundations that penetrate ∼60 m into the seafloor, depending on the encountered geotechnical parameters of the sediments. A significant obstruction to such foundation work are boulders on the seafloor and within the sediments.