Geoacoustic inversion of ambient noise: A simple method

The vertical directionality of ambient noise is strongly influenced by seabed reflections. Therefore, potentially, geoacoustic parameters can be inferred by inversion of the noise. In this approach, using vertical array measurements, the reflection loss is found directly by comparing the upward- with the downward-going noise. Theory suggests that this simple ratio is, in fact, the power reflection coefficient-potentially a function of angle and frequency. Modeling and parameter searching are minimized, and the method does not require a detailed knowledge of the noise source distribution. The approach can handle stratified environments and is believed to tolerate range dependence. Experimental data from five sites, four in the Mediterranean, one on the New Jersey Shelf, are described. Most of the Mediterranean sites had temporally varying noise directionality, yet yielded the same reflection properties, as one would hope. One site was visited in conditions of very low surface noise. This paper concentrates on an experimental demonstration of the feasibility of the method and data quality issues rather than automatic search techniques for geoacoustic parameters. (C) 2002 Acoustical Society of America.