Water Encyclopedia: Physics and Chemistry, pp.

569-571

SOUND IN WATER

D.L. MARRIN
Hanalei, Hawaii


As a sound travels through an elastic medium
such as water, a wave is created that imparts
energy to the individual moleculescausing
them to compress and then to relax along the
path of the wave. Because the medium is elastic,
the distance separating individual water mole-
cules is permitted to vary just slightly, such that
the propagation of sound may be defined as a
periodic variation in pressure that is transmitted
via adjacent molecules. Sound emanating from a
point source in water usually (but not always)
results in a three-dimensional waveform that
spreads spherically through the medium.
1

Similarly, a planar source of sound in water can
be considered as multiple point sources that cre-
ate a wave consisting of all the individual waves.
Sound waves are longitudinal, meaning that
molecules (e.g., water or air) comprising the
elastic medium move in direction that is parallel
to the propagating wave. Because water has a
significantly higher density than air, water
transmits sound more rapidly and efficiently than
does air. The water molecules essentially oscil-
late, or move back and forth over a very short
longitudinal distance; hence, sound waves are
classified as mechanical. By contrast, light
waves and microwaves are classified as electro-
magnetic and do not involve the movement of
water molecules for propagation. The speed of
sound in water is about 1500 meters per second
or 3300 miles per hour (i.e., approximately five
times greater than that in air), which varies
slightly with temperature, pressure, and salinity.

FREQUENCY AND AMPLI TUDE

The frequency of a sound wave is defined as
the number of waves that pass by a given point
during a specified period of time. A single wave
consists of a cycle that includes both com-
pression (squeezing together) and rarefaction
(rebounding apart); the distance over which a
cycle is continually repeated is known as the
wavelength. The period of time over which
waves are normally counted is one second;
therefore, sound frequencies are expressed as
cycles per second or hertz. Whereas high fre-
quency sounds possess short wavelengths, low
frequency sounds possess long wavelengths.
Frequency ranges and estimated intensity levels
for common underwater sounds are listed on
Table 1. Frequency-dependent differences in
underwater sound attenuation result in low-
pitched sounds traveling farther than high-
pitched ones generated at similar intensities.
The amplitude of a sound wave is defined by
the maximum longitudinal displacement (i.e.,
during one cycle of compression and rarefaction)
of water molecules relative to their resting, or
equilibrium, position. The intensity of a sound
wave is proportional to its amplitude and is often
quantified in the units of decibels. The decibel
scale is based on a ratio between the intensities
(expressed as a power) of a measured sound and
a reference sound corresponding to a standard
pressure. Many of the man-made sounds listed
on Table 1 are actually more intense than the
naturally-produced sounds, contributingat
least in partto the controversy regarding the
possible effects of anthropogenic noise on
marine organisms. Sound intensities are com-
monly presented for a distance of only one meter
from the source and, as such, are rarely in-
dicative of ambient underwater noise (e.g., the
cumulative intensity of sounds measured at
greater distances from the respective sources).

FATE OF OCEANI C SOUND

The propagation of sounds in the ocean is a
rather complex matter owing to differences in
water density as a function of depth, latitude,
seafloor topography, and many other factors.
Changes in seawater temperature, salinity, and
pressure all contribute to changes in density that,
in turn, affect sound waves traveling through the
media. Generally, sound is attenuated via the
processes of spreading (proportional to dis-
tance), reflection (due to solid structures or
boundaries between water of different densities),
scattering (due to rough surfaces), absorption
(conversion of acoustic to thermal energy), and
refraction (deflection of sound waves from a
straight path).
5
While ambient noise in a ship-
ping channel can exceed that outside a channel
by as much as 45 decibels (re 1 Pa), noise in a
channel is attenuated about 100 decibels from
that measured directly beneath ships.
2

Due to the vertical stratification of oceans,
sound behaves differently in turbulent shallow
waters than it does in either more isothermal
mid-depth waters or the waters immediately
overlying the bottom (see Table 2). Sound trans-
mission at the surface is highly dependent on
local conditions (e.g., wind, precipitation, swells,
Water Encyclopedia: Physics and Chemistry, pp. 569-571

bubbles) and is usually restricted to low fre-
quency sounds. However, most of the ocean lies
between shallow and bottom waters, creating a
relatively thick layer that transmits a spectrum of
sound waves with far less attenuation than that
encountered in either shallower or deeper waters.
Both humans and whales have taken advantage
of this sofar channel to broadcast signals and
songs, respectively, over vast oceanic distances.
6

Sounds generated within the sofar channel itself
or at shallower depths alongside seamounts are
entrained and transmitted within this deep
isothermal layer as a result of many contributing
physical processes.

UNDERWATER DETECTI ON

Detecting and identifying an underwater sound
from a particular source is often difficult due to
the aforementioned effects of the environment
and to the myriad of background noises from
which any single sound must be distinguished.
Sea sounds are detected by hydrophones (i.e., the
underwater equivalent of a microphone) that are
often positioned in specific arrays, thus
permitting the relative position of a sound source
to be determined. This type of passive detection
may be used to locate oceanic precipitation,
breaking surface waves, underwater explosions,
undersea volcanoes, shipping traffic, and marine
organisms that emit audible sounds (e.g.,
crustaceans, fishes, mammals).
7
Active detection techniques, such as sonar, are
routinely used to locate underwater objects
because the objects themselves need not emit
sound and because the results are generally more
interpretable. The most basic type of sonar is
echolocation, whereby a sound pulse (acoustic
energy) is introduced into the water. Depending
on the sonic wavelength and the size of the
objects, a portion of that acoustic energy is
reflected back to the source (e.g., a ship) where it
is detected, transduced, and analyzed. The dis-
tance, movement, size, and even shape of some
objects may be determined using sophisticated
sonars (e.g., Doppler, multibeam) and data
analysis techniques.
8
Several marine organisms
(most notably cetaceans) are believed to use
echolocation as a means of finding or assessing
prey, predators, conspecifics, seabed features,
and environmental conditions.
2


ULTRASOUND AND INFRASOUND

While most of the underwater sounds
discussed thus far lie within the sonic range of
humans (i.e., frequencies of 20 to 20,000 hertz),
water also transmits mechanical waves of
ultrasonic (>20,000 hertz) and infrasonic (<20
hertz) frequencies. Dolphins emit whistles at
fre-quencies as high as 30,000 hertz and complex
echolocation clicks at frequencies exceeding
300,000 hertz.
8
Obviously, the upper limit of
hearing for dolphins far exceeds that for humans.
In addition to marine organisms, ambient oceanic
noise associated with bubbles (i.e., trapped
gases), surface winds, waves, and sea spray can
reach ultrasonic frequencies. Man-made ultra-
sounds include everything from complex signals
for communication to guided waves for
inspecting underwater pipelines.
9
The moans of baleen whales are the most
common source of biologically-produced
infrasound, which has been documented down to
about 10 hertz.
8
By contrast, a number of
geological and meteorological events (e.g.,
volcanoes, earthquakes, sea ice cracking,
hurricanes) produce infrasonic waves that
propagate through the ocean at frequencies of
approximately 0.1 to 10 hertz. Even the
breaking of large surf, either onto the shore or on
the water itself, creates infrasound at frequencies
of 1 to 5 hertz.
10
Anthropogenic infrasound in
the ocean is created primarily via shipping
traffic, low frequency active sonar (LFAS), and
acoustic thermography. A thermography
technique known as ATOC generates tones down
to about 1 hertz, whereas LFAS sweeps multiple
tones of 100 to 500 hertz across each other and
produces resulting tones as low as 0.1 hertz.
2

Both ATOC and LFAS generate peak intensity
sounds that are greater than those of ships.


REFERENCES

1. Leighton, T.G. The Acoustic Bubble,
Academic Press, San Diego, Chapter 1 (1994).

2. Stocker, M., Ocean bio-acoustics and noise
pollution, The Journal of Acoustic Ecology 4,
16-29 (2003).

3. Science of Sound in the Sea. Office of Marine
Programs, University of Rhode Island, HTML
format (2004).

4. Greene, C.R., S.E. Moore, Man-made
noise, In: Marine Mammals and Noise (W.J.
Richardson et al., Eds.), Academic Press, San
Diego, Chapter 6 (1995).

Water Encyclopedia: Physics and Chemistry, pp. 569-571

5. Haines, G. Sound Underwater, Crane
Russak, New York, pp. 22-25 (1974).

6. Payne, R. Among Whales, Scribner, New
York, Appendix (1995).

7. Medwin, H., C.S. Clay. Fundamentals of
Acoustical Oceanography, Academic Press, San
Diego, Chapters 1 and 10 (1998).

8. Thompson, D.H., W.J. Richardson, Marine
mammal sounds, In: Marine Mammals and
Noise (W.J. Richardson et al., Eds.), Academic
Press, San Diego, Chapter 7 (1995).

9. Na, W.B., T. Kundu, Underwater pipeline
inspection using guided waves, Journal of
Pressure Vessel Technology 124, 196-200
(2002).

10. Garcs, M., C. Hetzer, M. Marrifield, M.
Willis, J. Aucan, Observations of surf
infrasound in Hawaii, Geophysical Research
Letters 30, 2264-2266 (2003).

TABLE 1. Approximate ranges for the frequencies and intensity levels of common underwater sounds. Reported
ranges were complied from data presented in various sources.
2,3,4
Intensity levels are presented in the units of decibels
relative to a reference pressure of one micropascal at a distance of one meter from the sound source. Sound level
decreases are a function of distance from the source, frequency range, and various environmental factors.

Sound Source Frequency (hertz) Intensity Level (decibels)
Ship Engines and Propellers 10-5000 160-190
Navigation and Profiling Sonars 100-3000 180-230
Explosive Devices/Air Guns 1000-17,000 190-260
Military Surveillance Sonars 1000-10,000 190-235
Icebreaking/Drilling Operations 20-1000 100-150
Whale Songs and Moans 10-8000 120-190
Dolphin Clicks and Whistles 500-25,000 100-180
Cetacean Echolocation 10,000-150,000 130-230
Snapping Shrimp Colony 2000-15,000 180-190
Lightning Strikes/Volcanoes/Earthquakes 0.1-20,000 up to 260


TABLE 2. Approximate depths and representative sound speeds for various water layers in the ocean. Reported
ranges were complied from data presented in various sources.
2,6,7


Vertical
Zone
Depth
(meters)
Speed
(m/sec)
Comments
Overlying Air NA* 330 Significantly lower acoustic impedance than water; minimal
transfer of sound energy.
Surface Water
Layer
0 to 50 1515 Influenced by weather (e.g., wind, rain, temp.) and
turbulence that affect sound waves.
Seasonal
Thermal Layer
50 to 800 1485-
1505
Sound channel (mostly for low frequencies); limited
vertical thickness; refracts sound waves originating
shallower and deeper.
Deep
Isothermal
Layer
800 to
4,000+
1485-
1525
Optimal sound channel (all frequencies); extensive vertical
thickness and horizontal extent; minimal sound attenuation.
Bottom Water
Layer
4,000+ to
seafloor
1525 Influenced by seafloor topographic features that reflect and
scatter sound waves.
Underlying
Rock
NA 2000-
6000
Higher acoustic impedance than water; moderate transfer of
sound energy.
* Not applicable. + Indicates that the transition between deep isothermal layers and bottom water layers may exceed 4,000 meters,
depending on the exact location within an ocean basin.