Have you ever tried to “check-in” to a location on social media? With a GPS-enabled smartphone installed with a mobile map app, you can tag your location and share it with friends. You can also find out how to get to a destination or search for nearby restaurants, bus stops, tourist attractions as well as acquiring real-time traffic information. All these location-related information is called “spatial data”……

As there is land surveying on land, there is hydrographic surveying at sea, though many of us may not be familiar with it. Unlike other sections of the Marine Department, the Hong Kong Hydrographic Office (HKHO) has been put directly under the Development Bureau instead of the Transport and Housing Bureau ever since its inception. Hong Kong is one of the busiest ports in the world. In the context of navigational safety, the HKHO carries out hydrographic surveys in Hong Kong waters regularly to gather relevant data including water depths and seabed nature and other navigational information to produce up-to-date nautical charts and publications, as well as providing useful nautical information for port users. Today, I have invited Mr Michael CHAU who is a Principal Marine Officer and Hydrographer to share with us the work of the HKHO……