Expanding uses of ambient noise for imaging, detection, and communication

Abstract

The use of ambient noise to sense the marine environment has a human history of only two decades. Starting with incoherent processing inspired by optical analogies such as Acoustic Daylight (TM), the exploration of the potential for ambient noise to provide useful information about the environment has blossomed into many related areas and diverse algorithms with connections to multistatic active sonar, classic passive sonar, communications, matched field processing and others. This presentation will introduce some recent work in these areas and attempt to draw together how the use of ambient noise, both by mankind and marine animals, is beginning to form a more complete picture of the potential of this exciting area of research. [Work supported by the Defence Science and Technology Agency, Singapore.]