Ground penetrating radar being used to detect potential sinkholes and subsurface voids

from: http://www.geoprac.net/

When sewer pipes crack and leak, the surrounding ground becomes saturated and soil can migrate into the pipe and leave behind a void. Eventually this void can expand until it undermines the pavement or other structures forming a sinkhole. The same ground penetrating radar technology being used by geophysicists to perform subsurface characterization and by the military to detect roadside bombs in being adapted to detect these voids before they reach the surface. Researchers at Louisiana Tech University are developing a robot to traverse sewer pipes and scan around the pipe for potential voids using the GPR. The research is being performed with $3M from NIST and $3.2M from Cues, Inc. a Louisiana sewer inspection company. Additional trials are slated to take place this month.

A Cadillac Escalade sits at the bottom of a sinkhole at North and Oakland avenues in Milwaukee on July 24, 2010, after heavy rains caused the pavement to give way. New technology is being tested that can find empty spaces where dirt has seeped into sewers and water pipes before they spread to create huge potholes or sinkholes big enough to swallow a Cadillac. (AP File Photo/Mark Was)

http://www.geoprac.net/geonews-mainmenu-63/61-available-resources/1103-ground-penetrating-radar-being-used-to-detect-potential-sinkholes-around-sewer-pipes?utm_source=GeoPrac+030+-+January+2012&utm_campaign=Newsletter030&utm_medium=email

http://www.nola.com/traffic/index.ssf/2012/01/radar_used_in_stealth_bombers.html

http://dailyreporter.com/2012/01/03/radar-finds-potential-potholes-sinkholes-early/comment-page-1/