New Method Improves Simulation of Underwater Noise Propagation in Marine Environments

Traditional approaches to modelling underwater noise propagation have significant limitations when it comes to ‘mapping’ complex three-dimensional scenarios, directional sources and broadband noise typical of human activities.

In a new study, titled “Modeling underwater noise propagation: A comparative study of fully 3D Time-Domain numerical strategies“, published in the international journal Ocean Engineering and carried out by a group of researchers from the National Institute of Oceanography and Applied Geophysics – OGS and the Department of Engineering and Architecture at the University of Trieste, an attempt was made to overcome these limitations by developing a new acoustic solver (within the open-source tool OpenFoam) capable of better handling mesoscale environments at frequencies relevant to practical applications, using an innovative modelling approach.