Ocean acoustic tomography using explosive charges to observe the submerged mesoscale oceanic variability in the East Sea of Korea

A tomography system consisting of aircraft-deployed shots as sources and a vertical line array moored by a receiver ship was used to survey a large area (120×120 km) where a mesoscale warm eddy appears frequently. The position of the shots was measured by the GPS on the aircraft and the detonation time (or depth) was monitored by sonobuoys which had been deployed close to the shot position. Results show that individual multipaths between a shot and the receiver contain substantial information for a vertical slice of the ocean with a warm eddy. With high accuracy, GPS positioning of shot locations, and receiver position, this rapidly deployable system can be used for monitoring the submerged structure of the warm eddy during the period of diffusive SST in summer in the East Sea of Korea. [Work supported by KOSEF.]