Low frequency acoustic properties of Posidonia oceanica seagrass leaf blades
Jay R Johnson1, Gabriel R Venegas1, Preston S Wilson1
1Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Research Laboratories, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, USA johnson.jayrichard@utexas.edu, gvenegas@utexas.edu, pswilson@mail.utexas.edu.
Abstract:
The acoustics of seagrass meadows impacts naval and oceanographic sonar applications. To study this environment, a one-dimensional resonator was used to assess the low-frequency (1-5 kHz) acoustic response of the leaf blades of the Mediterranean seagrass Posidonia oceanica in water. Three separate collections of plants from Crete, Greece, and Sicily, Italy were investigated. A high consistency in effective sound speed was observed within each collection while a strong variability was observed between different collections. Average size, mass, and epiphytic coverage within each collection were quantified, and discoloration and stiffness are discussed qualitatively with respect to the observed acoustic variability.
Related Concept Videos
Speed of Sound in Solids and Liquids
Sound Waves
Sound waves are longitudinal in most fluids because fluids cannot sustain any lateral pressure. In solids, however, shear forces help in propagating the disturbance in the lateral direction as well....
The Cochlea
Perception of Sound Waves
The pitch of a sound depends on the frequency and the pressure amplitude of the source. Two sounds of the same...
Deriving the Speed of Sound in a Liquid
The speed of sound in fluids can be derived by considering a mechanical wave...
Sound as Pressure Waves
The pressure fluctuation depends on the difference in displacements between the successive points in the...


