Azimuthal deviation for outdoor sound propagation in a moving medium with a crosswind

Abstract

Current codes for ray tracing in a moving atmosphere involve solutions of a set of differential equations. In this presentation, ray tracing is suggested, which is based on a closed-form expression for the sound propagation path in a stratified moving atmosphere. This approach can complement existing ray tracing codes, perform with improved computational efficiency, and serve as a benchmark solution. The closed-form expression for the sound propagation path enables other analytical formulations in geometrical acoustics such as the prediction of the azimuthal deviation as driven by the crosswind. This result also allows estimation of the crosswind provided that the azimuthal deviation between the true and apparent source location is measured. The result is validated by numerical simulations of sound propagation in the atmospheric surface layer with different meteorological regimes.