Topography Measurement of Scale-Model Representations of the Rough Ocean Bottom by Touch-Trigger Probe and Its Implications for Spectral Characterization

Abstract

Scale models of the ocean bottom exhibiting multiscale roughness having power-law form power-spectral density are useful for validation of deterministic and stochastic rough-surface scattering theories. Such scattering theories require accurate knowledge of the topography of the scale-model surface, which, at acoustic scales, can be measured on a two-dimensional grid using a kinematic-resistive touch-trigger probe and represented by a digital elevation model. Both the discrete representation and the physical measurement process introduce spectral artifacts. While the theoretical relationship describing spectral effects of the discrete representation is well known, this relationship is more complex for the physical measurement process. In the later case, spectral effects result from a combination of random measurement errors and fundamental limitations of probe measurement. Here, a numerical model of the physical measurement process is presented, which is used to simulate spectral effects of probe measurement. While random measurement errors can be controlled for and tend to introduce only an additive white-noise component into the measured power-spectral density, limitations of probe measurement are due to the finite size of the probe stylus and result in a systematic error in the measured power-spectral density for spatial wavenumbers above a critical wavenumber.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 2006
Accession Number
ADA498908

Entities

People

  • Jason E. Summers
  • Raymond J. Soukup
  • Robert F. Gragg

Organizations

  • United States Naval Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accuracy
  • Acoustic Scattering
  • Artifacts
  • Brownian Motion
  • Curvature
  • Digital Elevation Models
  • Errors
  • Intervals
  • Measurement
  • Military Research
  • Models
  • Scale Models
  • Scattering
  • Seabed
  • Simulations
  • Topography
  • White Noise

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Adaptive Control and Estimation with Uncertainty in Dynamic Systems.
  • Atmospheric Science / Meteorology, specifically Wind Wave Turbulence.
  • Fluid Dynamics.