- published: 27 Apr 2013
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Underwater acoustics is the study of the propagation of sound in water and the interaction of the mechanical waves that constitute sound with the water and its boundaries. The water may be in the ocean, a lake or a tank. Typical frequencies associated with underwater acoustics are between 10 Hz and 1 MHz. The propagation of sound in the ocean at frequencies lower than 10 Hz is usually not possible without penetrating deep into the seabed, whereas frequencies above 1 MHz are rarely used because they are absorbed very quickly. Underwater acoustics is sometimes known as hydroacoustics.
The field of underwater acoustics is closely related to a number of other fields of acoustic study, including sonar, transduction, acoustic signal processing, acoustical oceanography, bioacoustics, and physical acoustics.
Underwater sound has probably been used by marine animals for millions of years. The science of underwater acoustics began in 1490, when Leonardo da Vinci wrote the following,
Underwater refers to the region below the surface of water where the water exists in a natural feature (called a body of water) such as an ocean, sea, lake, pond, or river.
Three quarters of the planet Earth is covered by water. A majority of the planet's solid surface is abyssal plain, at depths between 4,000 and 5,500 metres (13,100 and 18,000 ft) below the surface of the oceans. The solid surface location on the planet closest to the centre of the orb is the Challenger Deep, located in the Mariana Trench at a depth of 10,924 metres (35,840 ft). Although a number of human activities are conducted underwater—such as research, scuba diving for work or recreation, or even underwater warfare with submarines, this very extensive environment on planet Earth is hostile to humans in many ways and therefore little explored. But it can be explored by sonar, or more directly via manned or autonomous submersibles. The ocean floors have been surveyed via sonar to at least a coarse resolution; particularly-strategic areas have been mapped in detail, in the name of detecting enemy submarines, or aiding friendly ones, though the resulting maps may still be classified.
Learn about what research is done on the oceans, and what physics is used to do this.
PH3452: Underwater Acoustics - Waveguide Part 1
This lecture was presented in February, 2010 to the ECE Department at the University of Utah as part of the Frontiers in Engineering Innovation lecture series. Dr. T. C. Yang has been with the Naval Research Laboratory, Washington DC, since 1979. He acted as the branch head of the signal processing branch for the last five years and is now a senior scientist and consultant in the acoustic division. Besides conducting underwater acoustic and acoustic oceanographic related research, he has also worked on sonar signal processing including the matched mode processing for a vertical line array and matched-beam processing for a horizontal line array. For the last ten years, his research is concentrated on environmental impact on underwater acoustic communications. He is a fellow of the Acoustic...
A fluid is a gas or a liquid. Compression-expansion waves in a fluid are called acoustic waves. These waves involve the propagation of changes in density, pressure, and temperature. Acoustic waves also occur in solids and plasmas, but these substances are more complicated because a variety of other types of waves can also exist (for example, shear waves). This entire course will deal with linear acoustics, which involves small deviations of the density. The study of finite-amplitude deviations is called nonlinear acoustics. Many new and more-complicated phenomena occur in nonlinear acoustics, and it is best to understand linear acoustics before studying nonlinear acoustics. The elective course PH4459 (nonlinear oscillations and waves) is taught every spring quarter and is open to all stude...
PH3452: Underwater Acoustics - Surface Interference Part 1
This four-day course is designed for biologists, and conservation managers, who wish to enhance their understanding of the underlying principles of underwater and engineering acoustics needed to evaluate the impact of anthropogenic noise on marine life. This course provides a framework for making objective assessments of the impact of various types of sound sources. Critical topics are introduced through clear and readily understandable heuristic models and graphics.