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Refraction, in acoustics, comparable to the refraction of electromagnetic radiation, is the bending of sound propagation trajectories (rays) in inhomogeneous elastic media (gases, liquids, and solids) in which the wave velocity is a function of spatial coordinates. Bending of acoustic rays in layered inhomogeneous media occurs towards a layer ...
Operating below the depth of the sound channel axis, where the speed of sound in water is the lowest, a submarine can prevent detection by surface ships, unless these ships use equipment like a towed array and/or an underwater drone to place hydrophones below the sound channel axis. Sound refraction: Just as a submarine can use refraction to ...
Refraction is the bending of sound waves caused by changes in the medium through which the wave is passing. For example, temperature gradients can cause sound wave refraction. [27] Acoustical engineers apply these fundamental concepts, along with mathematical analysis, to control sound for a variety of applications.
Underwater acoustic propagation depends on many factors. The direction of sound propagation is determined by the sound speed gradients in the water. These speed gradients transform the sound wave through refraction, reflection, and dispersion. In the sea the vertical gradients are generally much larger than the horizontal ones.
In physics, refraction is the redirection of a wave as it passes from one medium to another. The redirection can be caused by the wave's change in speed or by a change in the medium. [ 1 ] Refraction of light is the most commonly observed phenomenon, but other waves such as sound waves and water waves also experience refraction.
Since temperature and sound velocity normally decrease with increasing altitude, sound is refracted upward, away from listeners on the ground, creating an acoustic shadow at some distance from the source. [9] Wind shear of 4 m/(s · km) can produce refraction equal to a typical temperature lapse rate of 7.5 °C/km. [12]
Water pressure also affects sound propagation: higher pressure increases the sound speed, which causes the sound waves to refract away from the area of higher sound speed. The mathematical model of refraction is called Snell's law. If the sound source is deep and the conditions are right, propagation may occur in the 'deep sound channel'. This ...
An acoustic wave is a mechanical wave that transmits energy through the movements of atoms and molecules. Acoustic waves transmit through fluids in a longitudinal manner (movement of particles are parallel to the direction of propagation of the wave); in contrast to electromagnetic waves that transmit in transverse manner (movement of particles at a right angle to the direction of propagation ...