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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Marine archaeologists make 3D records by planning a minimally intrusive survey, capturing overlapping images or other sensor data, establishing scale and spatial references, and processing the results alongside field notes, plans, drawings, sections, and photographs. The model helps examine and communicate a site; by itself, it does not prove measurement accuracy or preserve the archaeological context.
How do marine archaeologists make 3D models of shipwrecks?
They first decide what archaeological question the survey must answer and what methods suit the site. Depending on depth, access, visibility, and the size of the area, the team may map the seabed with sonar, photograph accessible features with divers, or use a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to inspect deeper or hazardous locations. Photogrammetry software can then use overlapping images to reconstruct visible surfaces.
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The result is one part of a wider record, not a substitute for it. UNESCO Convention Rule 27 calls for a comprehensive site record, including provenance for material moved or removed, field notes, plans, drawings, sections, and photographs or recording in other media. The convention’s Rules 4 and 16 prioritize non-destructive and as non-intrusive-as-possible methods suited to project objectives. Projects must also follow applicable national laws, permissions, and site-management requirements. UNESCO Convention and Annex
How does underwater photogrammetry work?
Photogrammetry uses many photographs of a subject taken from different positions. Software identifies visual features shared between images, estimates how the images relate spatially, and uses those relationships to build a point-based representation that can be rendered as a 3D model. The same image set may also support a photomosaic or plan-view orthophoto.
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Coverage is the key practical requirement: the same features need to appear in multiple images, with enough overlap for the software to match them. NOAA describes planned camera routes and hundreds or thousands of images taken from above, the sides, and inside structures where accessible. NOAA’s photogrammetry explainer outlines the basic image-to-model process.
Capture steady, overlapping views
For broad coverage, NHHC field guidance recommends slow, steady passes in gridded lanes, overlap between lanes and heights, adequate light and focus, and avoiding unnecessary panning. On a large site, teams may collect imagery in sections to keep capture and processing manageable. Those sections still need adequate overlap and shared references if they are to be joined reliably. These are practical recommendations, not a universal specification for every site. NHHC field guidance
Account for underwater conditions
Water clarity, lighting, access, and the shape and condition of the wreck influence what can be recorded. A camera may miss obscured surfaces or areas that cannot be safely reached; no processing step can recover detail that was never captured. Teams should choose an acquisition plan suited to the question and site conditions rather than treating photogrammetry as an automatic first step.
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Which survey methods do teams use?
Different tools answer different questions. Sonar can map broad seabed relief and help identify targets, while close-range optical imagery records visible detail. A diver-carried camera can cover accessible locations; an ROV extends imaging to deeper or hazardous sites. These approaches can be combined rather than treated as alternatives.
| Method | Useful for | Typical record | Important limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multibeam sonar | Mapping broad seabed areas and locating features for closer inspection | Seabed relief or bathymetric mapping | Does not provide the same close visual detail as optical imagery |
| Diver-carried camera | Accessible locations and close image capture | Photographs for photogrammetry and visual documentation | Capture depends on access, safety, visibility, and lighting |
| ROV camera | Deeper or hazardous locations that divers cannot readily survey | Video or still imagery for inspection and documentation | An ROV does not automatically produce a scale-controlled, metric model |
A UNESCO Mediterranean mission offers an example of the sequence: its 2026 fact sheet reports that the Tunisian survey mapped 10 km² of seabed, including 2 km² at high definition, then used an ROV to check and document identified targets. The mission reports three newly documented shipwrecks in that area. These are figures from that mission, not standard coverage or expected results for other projects. UNESCO mission fact sheet
Not every investigation begins with photogrammetry. UNESCO’s 14 April 2026 account of work at La Isabela Bay describes historical-source review, local knowledge, geophysical prospecting, seafloor profiling, and sediment cores—methods chosen to suit that investigation’s questions and context. UNESCO’s La Isabela mission account
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How do archaeologists make a wreck model measurable?
A photorealistic surface is not automatically a reliable measuring instrument. To make measurements meaningful, teams need scale references and spatial control, then must report how those were established and validated. France’s Ministry of Culture describes tying reference points in photographs to real-world coordinates before specialist software generates a model. France Ministry of Culture: 3D modelling
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NHHC guidance recommends placing suitably sized scale bars near important features in several parts of a site where possible. This helps give the completed model scale. A scale bar alone does not establish the accuracy of every point: image coverage, control, processing, and validation also matter. The sources cited here establish no universal accuracy figure for underwater wreck models, so accuracy should be stated only when a project reports its control method and validation. NHHC field guidance
What does the 3D model add to the archaeological record?
A model can let researchers inspect visible structure from different viewpoints, document site condition, map distributions, and communicate a wreck to audiences who cannot visit it. A photomosaic or orthophoto can make it easier to examine the site in plan view. These outputs help analysis, but interpretation still depends on contextual records: where an observation was made, how it relates to other features, and whether anything was moved or removed.
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Historic England’s report on the wreck Invincible describes multi-image photogrammetry used to record vulnerable areas and produce 3D models for a virtual web tour. That is an example of a particular project, not evidence that every wreck can be documented in the same way. Historic England’s Invincible report
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How should teams preserve and share the record?
Planning for documentation, curation, reporting, and dissemination should begin before fieldwork ends. Under UNESCO Convention Rules 30–36, projects should make arrangements for interim and final reports, archives, curation of project material, and public dissemination of a final synthesis where appropriate. Treat the model as part of that project archive, together with its related documentation and metadata, rather than as a standalone visualization. Public access to sensitive site information may need to be limited to support protection and management. UNESCO Convention and Annex
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ScreenshotNeo is a website screenshot API and MCP server for developers. It is not an archaeological survey or photogrammetry tool; it can capture a web page, such as a published project page or virtual tour. Its one-call API returns a screenshot as PNG, JPEG, or WebP, or a PDF. Learn about ScreenshotNeo.
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cURL example (replace the target URL with the page you want to capture): See the ScreenshotNeo API documentation.
curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://stripe.com -o shot.webpCookie banners are accepted and removed before capture, along with known consent platforms, newsletter popups, and chat widgets; each cleanup step can be turned off. Bot checks, blank pages, timeouts, failed loads, and cache hits cost nothing, with response headers indicating the page verdict and billing status. Its MCP server offers screenshot and page-information tools for AI agents. The free plan includes 1,000 screenshots per month with no card; paid plans start at $5 for 3,000 screenshots.
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