Imaging marine geophysical environments with vector acoustics

Abstract

Using vector acoustic sensors for marine geoacoustic surveys instead of the usual scalar hydrophones enables one to acquire three-dimensional (3D) survey data with instrumentation and logistics similar to current 2D surveys. Vector acoustic sensors measure the sound wave direction directly without the cumbersome arrays that hydrophones require. This concept was tested by a scaled experiment in an acoustic water tank that had a well-controlled environment with a few targets. Using vector acoustic data from a single line of sources, the three-dimensional tank environment was imaged by directly locating the source and all reflectors.

Marine seismic surveys with vector acoustic sensors

“…Data from vector acoustic sensors used in geothe source hydrophone was moved along several lines so as acoustic surveys of the seafloor provide additional to cover multiple directions and distances from the sensor information not present in traditional pressure data from and targets. After shooting several reference lines, we hydrophones (Lindwall, 2006). A combined vector sensor placed two medium sized floats in the water as highly and controlled source gives both range and bearing for the reflective targets.…”

Application and Extension of Vertical Intensity Lower-Mode in Methods for Target Depth-Resolution with a Single-Vector Sensor

“…In the early nineties, a paper by D’Spain et al [ 5 ] received considerable attention, and during the last two decades several authors have conducted research on the signal processing theory of vector sensors ([ 6 , 7 , 8 ] and references therein). In the past decade, vector sensors have been proposed in other fields like port and waterway security [ 9 ], underwater communications [ 10 ], geoacoustic inversion [ 11 , 12 , 13 ] and geophysics [ 14 ].…”

3D underwater imaging using vector acoustic sensors

“…Data from vector acoustic sensors used in geoacoustic surveys of the seafloor provide additional directional information not present in scalar pressure data from traditional hydrophones (Lindwall, 2006). Hydrophone arrays for use in seismic profiling and seafloor imaging surveys such as side-scan sonar need to be about 20 wavelengths long to provide a directional resolution of 1° or 2° (Kinsler et al, 1982).…”