Published In
The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-3-2022
Subjects
Underwater acoustics, Acoustic models
Abstract
Hamilton’s classic 1980 paper2 formulated the modern concept of a seabed geoacoustic model, drawing on extensive literature to com- pile and synthesize information on seabed properties. Hamilton defined a geoacoustic model as a “model of the real seafloor with emphasis on measured, extrapolated, and predicted values of those properties important in underwater acoustics” that includes “the true thicknesses and properties of sediment and rock layers.” His work provided both the framework for predicting geoacoustic properties and the data to support it.
Hamilton complied geoacoustic information from diverse sources, including laboratory measurements, in situ probes, samples and cores, echo-sounder records, reflection and refraction surveys, and the Deep Sea Drilling Project. Rather than basing his frame- work on geographic position, he organized geoacoustic data into physiographic provinces including continental terraces, abyssal hills, and abyssal plains. Where sufficient data existed, geoacoustic models were further sub-divided, e.g., into terrigenous, calcareous, and siliceous sediments. This widened the applicability of his approach given the inevitable, but significant, spatial under-sampling of the seabed across the planet. Hamilton tabulated statistical results for near-surface sediment properties, plotted empirical curves for depth-dependent sediment and rock properties, and developed regression relationships between geoacoustic properties.
2E. L. Hamilton, “Geoacoustic modeling of the seafloor,” J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 68, 1313–1340 (1980).
Rights
Copyright © Acoustical Society of America. This article may be downloaded for personal use only. Any other use requires prior permission of the author and the Acoustical Society of America.
The following article appeared in Holland, C. W., & Dosso, S. E. (2022). Hamilton's geoacoustic model. The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 151(1), R1-R2. and may be found at https://doi.org/10.1121/10.0009157
DOI
10.1121/10.0009157
Persistent Identifier
https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/42802
Citation Details
Holland CW, Dosso SE. Hamilton's geoacoustic model. J Acoust Soc Am. 2022 Jan;151(1):R1. doi: 10.1121/10.0009157.
Description
The Reflections series takes a look back on historical articles from The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America that have had a significant impact on the science and practice of acoustics.