Scope of the Acoustical Oceanography Technical Committee
The Acoustical Oceanography Technical Committee is responsible for representing and fostering Acoustical Oceanography within the Acoustical Society of America. It is concerned with the development and use of acoustical techniques to measure and understand the physical, biological, geological and chemical parameters and processes of the sea.
Biological Oceanography
- Detection, classification, and quantification of marine organisms
- Habitat characterization
Chemical Oceanography
- Variations in ocean chemistry (e.g., via frequency dependent absorption measurements)
Geological Oceanography
- Seafloor properties, both surficial and internal
- Sediment suspension and transport
- Underwater acoustic observations of earthquakes
Physical Oceanography
- Air-sea interactions, e.g., air bubbles
- Turbulence and mixing
- Ocean surface waves
- Internal waves
- Solitary waves
- Fronts
- Circulation, e.g., mesoscale, gyre, and basin-scale dynamics
- Salinity and temperature structures
Acoustical Methods
Several acoustical methods are used to study various of oceanographic processes, especially to measure associated parameters.
Approaches include:
- ocean parameter estimation by acoustical methods
- remote sensing by active acoustic means
- acoustic imaging, inversion, and tomography
- developing acoustical instrumentation for oceanographic studies