Examining seamount flank geoacoustic properties with airgun shots

In May of 2023 as part of the New England Seamount Acoustics experiment, an airgun source was towed along strategic courses to expose bathymetric and sub-seafloor features of interest. Of interest to this research, the airgun fired 447 shots along an approximately semi-circular course centered on the Atlantis II plateau, which were recorded on a vertical line array of hydrophones stationed on the plateau. Analysis of the acoustic data alongside numerical airgun simulations reveal the presence of strongly spatially driven surficial features of the flank which cannot be explained solely by three-dimensional propagation. This research explores the influence of spatially variable sediment geoacoustic properties (including stratigraphy and scattering) through the use of two- and three-dimensional acoustic simulations, in situ sound speed calculations, and high resolution bathymetry models with modified roughness scales. Work supported by the Office of Naval Research.