Tutorial lecture on weather and acoustics

Abstract

The relationships between sound and weather can be fascinating, frightening, useful, and at times mystifying. This tutorial lecture explores the range of intersections between weather and acoustics. Weather can affect acoustic environments causing noise increases, noise reductions, and sound focusing. One aspect of this tutorial reviews results from propagation modeling, indicating that under some conditions, the atmosphere can produce vertical wave guides. Conversely, sound can be used to actively interrogate the atmosphere and provide information valuable for weather prediction and warning. Probing capabilities reviewed, with examples, show that wind profiles, temperature profiles, wind shears, gravity waves, and inversions can be defined acoustically. There are also possibilities for monitoring other difficult-to-observe parameters such as humidity profiles. In addition, weather processes can generate sound, detectable at long ranges using lower frequencies. Specifically, observing networks have observed infrasound from a growing number of meteorological events (e.g., severe weather, tornadoes, funnels aloft, atmospheric turbulence, hurricanes, and avalanches). Efforts to develop an infrasonic tornado detection system are described in some detail. Results indicate promise to help improve tornado detection and warning lead times, while reducing false alarms. Clear opportunities exist for infrasonic systems to provide operational weather data.