Overview of one year acoustical oceanography measurements on Chukchi shelf during Shallow Water Canada Basin Acoustic Propagation Experiment 2016–2017

Abstract

A multi-institutional, acoustical oceanography experiment was conducted from October 2016 through November 2017 on the Chukchi continental shelf covering 100–700 m isobaths. Parallel to a deep-water experiment conducted during the same period, the Shallow Water Canada Basin Acoustic Propagation Experiment (SW CANAPE) was designed to assess basin scale acoustic signals on the shelf region while detailed oceanographic dynamic of the shelf break region, particularly the upwelling and other dynamic of the upper 500 m water column, was measured simultaneously. Multiple arrays of oceanographic sensors including upward looking ice profiler, current profiler, temperature, conductivity, and pressure profiles measured temporal and spatial dynamics of 500 m upper ocean in connection with acoustic measurements. Distributed in a 30 km2 area north of Barrow Alaska, vertical line arrays including an L-shaped array, covered upper 200 m of the water column. Two acoustic sources placed at 148 m and 193 m depths on the shelf emitted broadband acoustic signals in frequency bands (700–1100 Hz, and 1400–4000 Hz) along and across the shelf while the sound speed and current profile and surface ice were being measured continuously. Deep water low frequency signals were also recorded. This talk provides an overview of the SW CANAPE experiment and highlights some of the detailed measurements. [Work supported by ONR.]