The Spatial Correlation Of Rough Seabed Scattering Of Surface-Generated Ambient Noise

This article considers the effect of rough seabed scattering on the spatial correlation of low-frequency ambient noise. Extending the study presented by Liu et al. [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 93, 753-769 (1993)], it is shown here that seabed roughness may alter the horizontal spatial correlation of the noise field primarily through the excitation of an interface wave along the bottom. The horizontal coherence and directionality of the noise field are shown to be a function of the correlation length and angular dependence of the roughness. Since the interface wave component decays rapidly away from the bottom, the vertical noise field correlation is minimumly affected by the seabed roughness. An examination of the noise field under two different statistical descriptions of seabed roughness, the Goff-Jordan and Gaussian models, shows that detailed differences in the roughness spectral shape produce only minor changes in the noise spatial correlation at infrasonic frequencies. © 1994, Acoustical Society of America. All rights reserved.

Duke Scholars

Author Jeffrey L. Krolik Electrical and Computer Engineering