Kevin L. Williams
Terry E. Ewart
Frank S. Henyey
Daniel Rouseff
Stephen A. Reynolds
James Grochocinski
Appl. Phys. Lab., Univ. of Washington, Seattle, WA 98105
Ocean variability imposes limitations on performance of synthetic aperture sonar (SAS) systems. An experiment to examine these limitations will be carried out in conjunction with the Coastal Mixing and Optics program. The talk begins with a description of the environment anticipated, based on historical data. Using this environmental information, the effects of refraction, internal waves, and turbulence are shown. Acoustic wavefront curvature caused by internal waves is a primary concern. These results have driven the design of the experimental apparatus. An overview of this apparatus is presented. [Work supported by ONR.]