Ocean Acoustics

The primary goals of Ocean Acoustics Program are to increase understanding of: marine animals' use of sound, how underwater acoustics can be used to assess marine animal populations, the degree to which anthropogenic activities are changing the underwater soundscape, how these changes may potentially impact marine animals in their acoustic habitat, and what measures can be taken to mitigate these potential impacts. With the advent of the industrial age, man has been introducing increasing amounts of both chronic (e.g. shipping) and acute (e.g. seismic surveys, naval sonar) noise into the world's oceans. In some locations (e.g. Pacific Ocean), this is evident through an increasing trend in background noise that has occurred over the last few decades. In other locations (e.g. Arctic Ocean region), the acoustic habitat appears poised to undergo substantial anthropogenic changes in the near future. Since many protected and other marine species rely on underwater sound as a means of communication and assessing their environment, and man-made sounds can travel vast distances underwater, there has been increasing concern over the potential impacts of anthropogenic noise. In order to address these concerns, the Ocean Acoustics Program focuses on: funding research directly, through an annual NOAA-wide request for proposals; leveraging funds with other government agencies to conduct work addressing impacts of noise on marine animals, as well as improve use of passive acoustic techniques to gather baseline life history and population data; conducting primary research utilizing passive acoustics in the Arctic Ocean and other regions; providing technical support and advice to the Office of Protected Resources in the management and assessment of protected species and anthropogenic impacts; encouraging education and capacity building in marine acoustics; and coordination on intra- and inter-governmental bodies and panels to address underwater noise issues.