echo sounder

noun

: an instrument for determining the depth of a body of water or of an object below the surface by sound waves

Examples of echo sounder in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The 1200 also had dimmable interior lights and even lights under the hull, along with an echo sounder for reading depths. Chloe Braithwaite, Robb Report, 2 May 2024 Over roughly 60,000 kilometers, researchers observed the mesopelagic zone by using echo sounders. WIRED, 9 Dec. 2023 That data was then compared with data from an echo sounder to confirm that the filmed fish were vertical migrants. WIRED, 9 Dec. 2023 Much like sonar scientists of the 1940s, Lauren Cook became interested in the mesopelagic through an echo sounder. WIRED, 9 Dec. 2023 Then the vessel’s echo sounder, a system that maps out the seafloor using sound waves, detected an underwater volcano measuring about 1.2 cubic miles, Live Science reports. Elizabeth Gamillo, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Oct. 2021 Using echo sounder data, the vehicles created high resolution images of the seafloor. Ula Chrobak, Popular Science, 8 June 2020 Vescovo would have to buy a multibeam echo sounder, an advanced sonar mapping system, to determine precise depths and dive locations. Ben Taub, The New Yorker, 10 May 2020 Using an echo sounder to guide its way through the depths, Boaty went down around 13,123 feet (4,000 meters) on this particular mission. David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, 18 June 2019

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'echo sounder.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1927, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of echo sounder was in 1927

Dictionary Entries Near echo sounder

Cite this Entry

“Echo sounder.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/echo%20sounder. Accessed 3 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

echo sounder

noun
: an instrument used to find out the depth of a body of water or of an object below the surface by means of sound waves

More from Merriam-Webster on echo sounder

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!