Research Summaries

Back Undersea Remote Sensing: Acoustic Propagation in Rivers and Estuaries

Fiscal Year 2017
Division Graduate School of Engineering & Applied Science
Department Oceanography
Investigator(s) Reeder, Davis B.
Sponsor Office of Naval Research (Navy)
Summary Overarching goals for this proposed intensive experimental work are to develop new capabilities in understanding and monitoring the dynamics of the riverine and estuarine environments based on the characterization of the acoustical environment through in situ field observations and modeling which are closely linked to environmental measurements. Specifically, there are five aspects to this proposed research: (1) Intensive field work and extensive data collection: During each of the field experiments, collect acoustic and environmental data centered on ATLAS operations to identify and quantify environmental features and their impact on acoustic propagation and backscatter in the riverine and estuarine environment. Capture ATLAS, AUV navigation and MF signals by deploying hydrophones on moorings, and deploying phones adaptively by small boat and float based on ATLAS locations and movement relative to the hydrological features. (2) Data analysis: Analyze the data collected during each of the USRS field experiments, focusing on (a) defining and describing characteristic features in the acoustic field, (b) correlation to simultaneously measured thermo- and hydrodynamic parameters made by colleagues from WHOI, ARL/UT, UW/APL and Panama City; and (c) characterizing the acoustic propagation properties of the hydrological features identified during the experiment. (3) Modeling: Using T & S profiles collected during the experiments, develop environmental model input for acoustic propagation modeling to investigate the physics of acoustic propagation characteristics of the hydrological features. Compare and contrast with in situ field observations. Investigate the effect of the environmental factors on the measured acoustic parameters. (4) Operational impact: Assess the impact of the environmental features on the operational performance of sonar systems of interest. (5) Publication: Disseminate results via conference presentations and peer-reviewed journal publications, as appropriate.
Keywords Acoustics Estuary Propagation River USRS
Publications Publications, theses (not shown) and data repositories will be added to the portal record when information is available in FAIRS and brought back to the portal
Data Publications, theses (not shown) and data repositories will be added to the portal record when information is available in FAIRS and brought back to the portal