The Eastern Canada Shallow Water Ambient Noise experiment

Abstract

In recent years the underwater acoustics community has shifted focus from oceanic to littoral water areas. Working with shallow water acoustics is extremely challenging since the environment can change dramatically in both time and space. The Eastern Canada Shallow-Water Ambient-Noise (EC-SWAN) experiment had the purpose of collecting data on the temporal and spatial variation of ambient noise in Eastern Canadian waters. One hour data samples were collected monthly from four sites across the Grand Banks of Newfoundland and the Scotian Shelf from December of 1995 to December of 1996. This paper describes the experimental process utilized, and presents samples of the data that demonstrate the temporal and spatial variability observed. In particular, the variability of the noise field due to biological, shipping and wind sources is explored.