Observation and modeling of three-dimensional sound propagation along a nonlinear internal gravity wave at a shelfbreak
Journal
The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
Journal Volume
157
Journal Issue
2
Start Page
857
End Page
865
ISSN
0001-4966
1520-8524
Date Issued
2025-02-01
Author(s)
Abstract
Underwater sound propagation can be influenced by strong sound speed gradients generated by nonlinear internal gravity waves (NIWs). Additionally, the seafloor slope plays a crucial role in controlling the direction of acoustic reflections. Experimental data collected at a shelfbreak in the northeastern area of the South China Sea were analyzed to investigate the joint acoustic effects of these two environmental factors. Both two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) numerical sound propagation models were employed to study the observed acoustic signal variations on a hydrophone vertical line array. Comparisons between 2D and 3D sound propagation were conducted to examine changes in ray tracing paths and transmission loss associated with approaching NIWs over the sloping seafloor. 3D sound ducting between the NIW front and the bottom slope was observed to cause a significant increase in acoustic intensity, up to 9.5 dB, over a propagation distance of 4.8 km.
Subjects
Acoustic arrays
Acoustic intensity
Acoustic Modeling
Acoustic noise
Acoustic wave velocity
Acoustic wave velocity measurement
Image coding
Underwater acoustics
Acoustic effects
Acoustic reflection
Internal gravity waves
Seafloors
Sound propagation
Sound speed
South China sea
Three-dimensional sounds
Two-dimensional
Underwater sound propagation
article
environmental factor
gravity
human
sound
sound intensity
South China Sea
velocity
Acoustic wave propagation
SDGs
Publisher
Acoustical Society of America (ASA)
Type
journal article