Aircraft noise-Auralization-based assessment of weather-dependent effects on loudness and sharpness

This paper deals with the question of how specific weather conditions affect the perception of aircraft noise. Auralization is a suitable method by enabling parametrical decompositions of the overall aircraft noise scenario into source and propagation components. Considering influences on the auditory perception, the signal processing chain contains different virtual receivers and post processing using psychoacoustic hearing models. For broad coverage, generic standardized as well as measurement-based atmosphere models with variation of ground impedances such as soil data are evaluated. These variations are given aircraft noise measurement values based on A-weighted sound pressure levels L_A and psychoacoustic measures regarding loudness, N, and sharpness, S. The results show an immense influence of weather conditions on A-weighted sound pressure levels and on psychoacoustic perception of aircraft noise, too. The weather-dependent differences of A-weighted sound pressure levels are up to 15 dB_A and relative differences regarding loudness of factor 1.6 and sharpness of factor 2.0 occur. The approach can be used to get a better understanding of how the temporal statistics of specific local weather conditions and their perceptual consequences may lead to improved taxation of actual noise events and to an improved basis for long-term averages of aircraft noise effects.