Over recent years, research on acoustic remote sensing of the ocean has evolved considerably, especially in tackling complex physical and biological processes in shallow waters. A workshop was held in Carvoeiro, Portugal, in March 1999, bringing together leading international researchers in the field. In contrast to much of the recent theoretical work, emphasis was placed on the experimental validation of the techniques. This volume, based on presentations at the workshop, summarizes a range of diverse and innovative applications. The invited contributions explore the use of acoustics to measure bottom properties and morphology, as well as to probe buried objects within the sediment. Within the water column, sound is applied to imaging of oceanographic features such as currents and tides or monitoring of marine life. Another key theme is the use of sound to solve geometric inverse problems for precise tracking of undersea vehicles. This volume should be useful both to the novice seeking an introduction to the field and to advanced researchers interested in the latest developments in acoustic sensing of the ocean environment.
Preface. Acknowledgements. Dynamics of acoustic propagation through a soliton wave packet: observations from the INTIMATE96 experiment; O.C. Rodriguez, et al. Acoustical effects of internal tides on shallow water propagation: an overview of the INTIMATE96 experiment; Y. Stephan, et al. Acoustically focused oeanographic sampling and ocean forecasting; P. Elisseeff, H. Schmidt. The Haro Strait geoacoustic tomography experiment; N.R. Chapman, et al. Quantitative performance comparison among processors in MFP; A.T. Abawi, et al. Broadband shallow water localization with a mobile array: experimental results; J.P. Ianniello, J.M. Tattersall. Tidal effects on source inversion; M.B. Porter, et al. Inverse acoustical determination of photosynthetic oxygen productivity of Posidonia seagress; J.-P. Hermand, et al. A test at sea for measuring acoustic backscatter from marine vegetation; A. Siccardi, R. Bozzano. Transient bistatic scattering from buried objects; I. Karasalo, J. Hovem. Inversion of normal incidence backscatterd data: getting seabed geoacoustic and morphological parameters; A. Caiti, O. Bergem. New theoretical basis for determining the geoacoustic paramters of the seabed; M.J. Buckingham. Geophysical parameters in a poro-elastic sediment; N.P. Chotiros. Seabottom acoustic parameters from inversion of Yellow Sea experimental data; P.H. Rogers, et al. Adaptive 3D joint inversion of direct, reflected and refracted arrivals; G. Rossi, et al. Application of geo-acoustic inversion techniques to subsurface imaging of seismic nearfield scenarios; M. Westebbe, et al. Geoacoustic inversion with drifting buoys: En Verse 1997/98 experiments (Marettimo Is.); J.-P. Hermand, et al. Index Contributors.