The UK Ministry of Defence has awarded Cohort company SEA a contract to upgrade the ambient noise prediction system (ANPS) for the Royal Navy.
The ANPS takes meteorological and oceanographic forecasts, together with oceanographic databases, and performs complex acoustic propagation calculations to produce regular forecasts of ambient noise conditions in the ocean.
The results enable the Royal Navy vessels to plan operations and improve the effectiveness of their sonars, allowing them to adjust elements such as sonar frequencies and depths accordingly.
According to SEA, the upgraded ANPS will incorporate the latest available environmental information and take advantage of higher resolution meteorological models to produce ambient forecasts that will be used by vessels equipped with sonar assets throughout the UK Royal Navy.
The ANPS was first developed by SEA, which worked in conjunction with the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton and in collaboration with NATO scientists to undertake research into acoustic characterisation of the seabed. It was released to the RN in 2003.
The ANPS is now part of the operational support provided to the fleet by the Joint Operational Meteorology and Oceanography Centre (JOMOC).