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Underwater Acoustics

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lightbulbAbout this topic
Underwater acoustics is the study of sound propagation in water, encompassing the generation, transmission, and reception of sound waves in aquatic environments. This field examines the physical principles governing sound behavior in water, including its interaction with marine organisms, the seafloor, and underwater structures.
lightbulbAbout this topic
Underwater acoustics is the study of sound propagation in water, encompassing the generation, transmission, and reception of sound waves in aquatic environments. This field examines the physical principles governing sound behavior in water, including its interaction with marine organisms, the seafloor, and underwater structures.

Key research themes

1. How can underwater acoustics monitor and assess anthropogenic noise impacts on marine ecosystems?

This research area focuses on measuring, modeling, and managing anthropogenic underwater noise, which affects marine life through behavioral disturbance, masking, physiological stress, and injury. It aims to develop effective monitoring systems and regulatory frameworks to quantify underwater noise sources, map their propagation, and assess ecological impacts at local, regional, and basin scales. The theme is critical due to the growing blue economy, increasing underwater noise from shipping, construction, and other human activities, and the need to integrate acoustic data into marine conservation policies.

Key finding: This paper establishes the interdisciplinary framework for assessing underwater sound impacts on marine life using a source-pathway-receiver model based on the one-way sonar equation. It highlights advances in redefining... Read more
Key finding: This article demonstrates that real-time, low-cost passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) systems can effectively quantify radiated noise from diverse anthropogenic sources such as ship traffic, oil and gas exploration, and... Read more
Key finding: This work provides a science-based framework for conducting Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) of underwater noise, addressing current shortcomings such as inconsistent receptor identification, improper noise metrics, and... Read more
Key finding: The SOUNDSCAPE project presented a basin-scale, long-term underwater acoustic monitoring network in the Northern Adriatic Sea, utilizing calibrated automatic recorders to provide continuous 24-hour data at 48 kHz sampling.... Read more
Key finding: This policy-focused report delivers monitoring guidance aligned with the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), specifying standardized methods for measuring impulsive and continuous underwater noise. It recommends... Read more

2. What technological advancements optimize underwater acoustic detection and monitoring for marine research and conservation?

This theme encompasses the design, deployment, and evaluation of acoustic instrumentation technologies such as hydrophones, autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), distributed acoustic sensing (DAS), and novel sensor arrays. The focus is on enhancing detection sensitivity, spatial coverage, real-time processing capability, and cost efficiency for monitoring biological signals, anthropogenic noise, and environmental parameters. Methodological innovations enable detailed behavioral studies of marine fauna, improved acoustic spatial localization, and effective large-scale soundscape characterization, supporting mitigation and conservation efforts.

Key finding: This study reports pioneering use of distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) on a 50 km submarine fiber-optic cable to detect hydroacoustic signals from a controlled ship-based seismic survey using air-gun shots. The DAS system... Read more
Key finding: This paper presents the development and validation of a low-cost, homemade hydrophone comprising commercial piezoelectric disks in balanced configuration, capable of capturing dolphin vocalizations including whistles, click... Read more
Key finding: This work details the design and development of a low-cost autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) optimized for acoustic inspections of submarine structures up to 100 meters depth. Emphasizing cost reduction and software... Read more
Key finding: This study introduces CETOSCOPE©, an autonomous underwater device equipped with a tetrahedral array of four synchronized hydrophones and 360° video cameras for 3D localization of moving acoustic sources such as cetaceans.... Read more
Key finding: Using a tetrahedral hydrophone array suspended within the water column, this research elucidates both dynamic (pressure) and kinematic (velocity and acceleration) components of underwater noise generated by impact pile... Read more

3. How do environmental variations and material properties influence underwater acoustic propagation and signature?

This thematic area investigates how complex environmental factors—such as water column stratification, temperature, salinity, waves, and substrate layering—and engineered material structures affect the propagation of underwater sound and acoustic signatures of underwater objects. Understanding these influences is vital for accurate acoustic modeling, detection, classification, and stealth technologies. It includes studies on sound speed profile variability effects on multipath channels, statistical characterization of underwater noise in shallow tropical waters, and the development of advanced materials to alter sonar reflectivity for defense applications.

Key finding: This study experimentally documents how transient water column variations, including internal waves detected during an experiment in Trondheim Fjord, induce strong amplitude and Doppler variations in acoustic channel impulse... Read more
Key finding: This research characterizes underwater acoustic noise in shallow tropical waters, demonstrating that noise has a non-Gaussian probability density function with colored spectrum exhibiting approximately 20 dB/decade power... Read more
Key finding: This experimental work assesses acoustical signatures of open-celled silicon carbide (SiC) foam ceramics for application as stealth coatings or casings on naval mines. Tests at sonar frequencies (80–100 kHz) showed that SiC... Read more
Key finding: The study quantifies underwater sound emissions from rigid-hulled inflatable boats (RHIBs) at three sites, showing broadband source levels increasing from 134 to 171 dB re 1 µPa @ 1 m over speeds of 3 to 16 m/s, dominant... Read more

All papers in Underwater Acoustics

Scientific and technological development necessitates often legal regulation, to be achieved through an interaction between science and law during the decision-making process. Taking as an example the case of underwater noise pollution,... more
A model of the multibeam echosounding process was developed. This model has now been used as the basis for the application of a model inversion technique, with the aim of analyzing midwater multibeam echosounder data, for fisheries... more
Underwater wireless sensor networks (UWSN) consist of a certain number of sensors that interact to send the sensed data to the sink node and perform collaborative task. Most UWSN choose acoustic as a communication medium for wireless... more
One of the major applications of underwater acoustic sensor networks (UWASN) is ocean environment monitoring. Employing data mules is an energy efficient way of data collection from the underwater sensor nodes in such a network. A data... more
Abstract: Vector sensors measure,both the acoustic pressure and the three components,of particle velocity. Because of this, a vector sensor array (VSA) has the advantage of being able to provide substantially higher directivity with a... more
CESVA W e s e ll, re n t, s e rv ic e , a n d c a lib ra te so u nd an d v ib ra tio n in s tru m en ts,
Although the songs of humpback whales have been extensively studied, other vocalizations and percussive sounds, referred to as "social sounds," have received little attention. This study presents the social vocalization repertoire of... more
Media Access Control (MAC) must be carefully considered in multi-hop Underwater Acoustic Sensor Networks (UASNs) due to limited bandwidth and large propagation delay. In particular, variable propagation delays in UASNs cause inaccurate... more
The purpose of this research is to investigate multipath arrival structures that are present in received passive sonar data and exploit this for enhanced passive sonar detection and tracking capability. OBJECTIVES Inherent in passive... more
Techniques based on impulsive sources are used since the beginning of the Underwater Acoustic science, to evaluate the distance of objects and to plot the profile of the sea bottom. In this paper the authors investigate the behavior of... more
Acoustic transmission loss (TL) and supporting ocean environmental data collected during the Asian Seas International Acoustics Experiment (ASIAEX) on June 3, 2001, in the East China Sea (ECS), in a water depth of approximately 100 m are... more
The statistics of low-frequency, long-range acoustic transmissions in the North Pacific Ocean are presented. Broadband signals at center frequencies of 28, 75, and 84 Hz are analyzed at propagation ranges of 3252 to 5171 km, and... more
The long-term objective of this research is to develop a theoretical foundation for the design of new multi-static sonar concepts for littoral seabed imaging and mine counter measures (MCM) operations. Multistatic configurations have been... more
In the herring (Clupea harengus), the swim bladder is connected to both the alimentary canal and the anal opening. The anterior duct is used for filling the swim bladder with air. Gas release from the anal opening is often observed when... more
The method proposed in this paper provides a computational technique for solving acoustic scattering problems associated with arbitrarily shaped two-or three-dimensional fluid-filled bodies. In particular, using free-space Green's... more
The results from two bottom backscattering experiments are described in this paper. These experiments occurred within about 1 km of each other but were separated by approximately five years (1999 and 2004). The experimental methods used... more
les baleines à bosse mâles émettent des vocalises organisées et, pour certaines, répétées formant ainsi le leitmotiv d'un chant. Principalement, dans le but de mieux appréhender le comportement de ces baleines et notamment les... more
An increasing demand to explore the vast ocean floor for various purposes has made it necessary to deploy networks of underwater unmanned vehicles (UUVs) capable of carrying out multiple tasks. For information transfer among these... more
Production of sound is a popular terminology in fish biology. Usually, fish and mammals produce sounds to attract mates, continue communication among them and sometimes without any reasons. These sounds have a significant impact on... more
The underwater acoustic channel is a complicated and time-varying multipath channel, and many equalization algorithms have been researched and developed to overcome the difficulties for underwater acoustic communication. Unfortunately,... more
Underwater Acoustic methods have been extensively used to locate and identify marine objects. These applications include locating underwater vehicles, finding shipwrecks, imaging sediments and imaging bubble fields. Ocean is fairly... more
A passive sonar array designed for tracking diving sperm whales in three dimensions from a single small vessel is presented, and the advantages and limitations of operating this array from a 6 m boat are described. The system consists of... more
Ultra-low power MSP430 MCU Master-slave architecture Underwater acoustic recorder Long-term deployment a b s t r a c t Reducing overall power consumption is core issue in low power, high sampling rate, large storage data loggers necessary... more
The Hydata (short for hydro-data) sonobuoy was developed by Mr Robert Beharie during 2008-10 at the International Centre for Island Technology (ICIT). It provides remote sensing of calibrated high-quality sound data in marine... more
The Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) calls for the establishment of networks of seismic, hydroacoustic, infrasonic, and radionuclide sensors to monitor the earth for unannounced underground, underwater, and atmospheric nuclear... more
Subsea Metrology exercise are very critical in subsea field development due to there use in subsea tie-in operations. Despite this criticality, there are limited papers detailing the advancement of different methods of carrying out this... more
Acoustics is the basics of the most important technologies for underwater telecommunication, as well as for target detection and identification in the aquatic media. Multiple frequency measurements are the key for species discrimination... more
Avances y análisis del desarrollo de la Arqueología Subacuática en la Península de Yucatán durante su 10 Aniversario de su oficina en la región. Subdirección de Arqueología Subacuática, Sede INAH Campeche, México. Ponencia presentada en... more
Designing sounds in contemporary times has been very extensive and variety, as well as for movies, music, games, and so on. One of which is designing underwater sounds. There are many ways to create and design this sounds. To investigate... more
The word acoustics originates from the Greek word meaning "to listen." The original meaning concerned only hearing and sound perception. The word has gradually attained an extended meaning and, in addition to its original sense, is now... more
This thesis introduces a new procedure for the enhancement of acoustic images of the bottom of the sea produced by side-scan sonars. Specifically, it addresses the problem of estimating and correcting geometric distortions frequently... more
In marine biodiversity conservation, population size estimation of marine species is the most significant challenge. Many top-notch researches have been conducted for estimating the population size of fish and mammals. Most of the... more
Mediante el análisis de señales acústicas producto de embarcaciones sobre el agua tomadas en campo, se desarrolló un algoritmo para la detección, clasificación y localización de dichas embarcaciones. Además se... more
La Fundación Malpelo, ha sido pionera en Colombia en el uso de nuevas técnicas para el estudio de las poblaciones de tiburones; tal como la telemetría acústica. Con el objetivo de determinar si hay residencia de las especies Triaenodon... more
Sistem penentuan posisi akustik bawah laut adalah sistem penentuan posisi yang menggunakan prinsip hidro-akustik dalam menentukan posisi suatu objek yang ada di bawah laut. Karena gelombang elektromagnetik sangat lemah ketika di bawah air... more
Just as fine particles such as those in muddy water obstruct our view optically, gas bubbles absorb and scatter sound to a great extent as well. This thesis outlines the theory and develops a model for the acoustic scattering of a common... more
In recent years, the use of multibeam sonar to investigate and interpret the underwater landscape has increased substantially. Its advancement has allowed marine archaeologists to study areas underwater not previously accessible and its... more
The paper addresses the general problem of estimating the position of an underwater target carrying an acoustic emitter by measuring the times of arrival (TOAs) of the acoustic signals at a set of surface buoys equipped with submerged... more
The fundamental principles of acoustic theory and its application to structural vibrations and the interactions of elastic structures with acoustic media are presented in an introductory textbook for graduate students of engineering and... more
The pollution monitoring system describes the processes and activities that need to implement through monitor the quality of specific environment. In this thesis those activities and processes are presented by assuming two important... more
A shipwreck was discovered in deep-water during a systematic side-scan sonar survey conducted in 2007 by Malta's heritage authorities and the University of Malta. Located off the coast of the island of Gozo, Malta, this site was the... more
An article linking the acoustic properties of waves to how sperm whales use them. Aimed at a GCSE audience with the view to support and contextualise Physics within the Science National Curriculum.
Multipath arrivals in many underwater acoustic channels are often cross-correlated and as a result, the path cross-correlation matrix shows a smaller rank than the number of multipath delay taps. Channel tracking error, measured in terms... more
To date most sonars use narrow band pulses and often only the echo envelope is used for object detection and classification. This paper considers the advantages afforded by bio-inspired sonar for object identification and classification... more
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