1 00:00:00,320 --> 00:00:02,880 Speaker 1: Brought to you by the reinvented two thousand twelve camera. 2 00:00:03,240 --> 00:00:08,959 Speaker 1: It's ready. Are you get in touch with technology? With 3 00:00:09,039 --> 00:00:17,800 Speaker 1: tech Style from how stuff works dot com. Hello again, everyone, 4 00:00:17,840 --> 00:00:20,239 Speaker 1: Welcome to tech stuff. My name is Chris Poulette and 5 00:00:20,239 --> 00:00:22,599 Speaker 1: I am an editor at how stuff works dot com. 6 00:00:22,600 --> 00:00:25,640 Speaker 1: Sitting across from me as usual as senior writer Jonathan Strickland. 7 00:00:25,720 --> 00:00:28,520 Speaker 1: Have I got this straight? Jonesy? A forty million dollar 8 00:00:28,600 --> 00:00:31,480 Speaker 1: computer tells you you're chasing an earthquake, but you don't believe, 9 00:00:31,720 --> 00:00:36,000 Speaker 1: and you come up with this on your own. That 10 00:00:36,280 --> 00:00:39,639 Speaker 1: had a direct burying to our topic today, and that 11 00:00:39,680 --> 00:00:45,960 Speaker 1: topic would be sonar sound navigation and ranging. Well, that 12 00:00:46,240 --> 00:00:49,360 Speaker 1: pretty much covers it, so, well, that's exactly what it is. 13 00:00:49,400 --> 00:00:52,239 Speaker 1: It's one of those nice, nice words that sort of 14 00:00:52,240 --> 00:00:54,760 Speaker 1: covers it. So yeah, no, it's it's it's very it's 15 00:00:54,840 --> 00:00:57,640 Speaker 1: very much exactly what sounds like. It's using sound to 16 00:00:58,080 --> 00:01:02,720 Speaker 1: navigate and to to find the distance from other objects. 17 00:01:03,040 --> 00:01:04,440 Speaker 1: As it turns out, there a lot of ways to 18 00:01:04,560 --> 00:01:07,920 Speaker 1: use sonar um and we'll get into that, uh in 19 00:01:07,959 --> 00:01:09,639 Speaker 1: a minute, but there are also a lot of different 20 00:01:09,680 --> 00:01:13,880 Speaker 1: types of applications, uh, different ways to use it as 21 00:01:14,000 --> 00:01:18,039 Speaker 1: in like um, different kinds of equipment that that can 22 00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:21,480 Speaker 1: be used to find depth and identify things in the 23 00:01:21,520 --> 00:01:24,440 Speaker 1: water and even map the sea floor if you want 24 00:01:24,440 --> 00:01:27,120 Speaker 1: to do that. Yep. And uh, actually, the you know, 25 00:01:27,160 --> 00:01:29,840 Speaker 1: we're not the only ones to to use sonar, not 26 00:01:29,840 --> 00:01:32,560 Speaker 1: by a long shot. True. Dolphins and whales use it 27 00:01:32,959 --> 00:01:37,200 Speaker 1: to man to other animals. Yes, that would be an echolocation, Yes, yeah, exactly. 28 00:01:37,200 --> 00:01:39,240 Speaker 1: That's what the sonar is based off of. It's the 29 00:01:39,280 --> 00:01:42,200 Speaker 1: idea of the way sound travels. And so if you 30 00:01:42,400 --> 00:01:45,040 Speaker 1: sound travels and waves, it's a it's actually a physical 31 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:48,120 Speaker 1: uh thing. It's you know, we don't see it, but 32 00:01:48,200 --> 00:01:51,880 Speaker 1: it is a physical effect. When you make a sound, 33 00:01:52,560 --> 00:01:57,640 Speaker 1: you are causing stuff to bang against each other. Sounds 34 00:01:57,720 --> 00:02:02,040 Speaker 1: so so scientific, it's true. So when sound travels, it's 35 00:02:02,080 --> 00:02:05,760 Speaker 1: really lots of air molecules bouncing against each other until 36 00:02:06,280 --> 00:02:09,320 Speaker 1: well really just until it disperses, so it keeps on going. 37 00:02:09,360 --> 00:02:12,680 Speaker 1: I mean. And we detect sound, of course through hearing, 38 00:02:13,240 --> 00:02:15,480 Speaker 1: but there are other ways to detect it. There there 39 00:02:15,520 --> 00:02:18,520 Speaker 1: are sounds that are outside of our range of hearing 40 00:02:18,919 --> 00:02:21,440 Speaker 1: that we can sense, Like there's some that are so 41 00:02:21,520 --> 00:02:23,080 Speaker 1: low that you know, you can't hear it. But you 42 00:02:23,080 --> 00:02:29,840 Speaker 1: can feel it. That's thrumbing feeling. And when sound hits 43 00:02:29,880 --> 00:02:34,120 Speaker 1: a really solid object, uh, it bounces it, it refracts 44 00:02:34,120 --> 00:02:37,240 Speaker 1: off as some of it reflects back and uh and 45 00:02:37,440 --> 00:02:41,040 Speaker 1: that's where we get the whole echo effect. So when 46 00:02:41,040 --> 00:02:43,560 Speaker 1: you're in the right kind of environment and you speak 47 00:02:43,600 --> 00:02:46,440 Speaker 1: and you hear that echo, that's those sound waves bouncing 48 00:02:46,480 --> 00:02:48,919 Speaker 1: back and coming back to you. Well, you can use 49 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:53,840 Speaker 1: this to find your way around an environment. Well, um, 50 00:02:53,880 --> 00:02:56,680 Speaker 1: so where does sonar come from? Then we have to 51 00:02:56,720 --> 00:03:00,880 Speaker 1: figure out exactly. Uh really when that all started taking place, 52 00:03:00,960 --> 00:03:04,160 Speaker 1: And I think it was really probably, I mean, people 53 00:03:04,200 --> 00:03:06,880 Speaker 1: have been doing it for a long time. Yeah, you could, 54 00:03:06,880 --> 00:03:09,800 Speaker 1: you could identify things and under the surface of the water. 55 00:03:09,960 --> 00:03:12,600 Speaker 1: But why are you creating him? Because my favorite man 56 00:03:12,639 --> 00:03:15,800 Speaker 1: of all time did some experiments with listening to sound 57 00:03:15,800 --> 00:03:21,880 Speaker 1: through water. Okay, Leonardo da Vinci. We just finished talking 58 00:03:21,880 --> 00:03:24,400 Speaker 1: about him a second ago, which I'll try and make 59 00:03:24,440 --> 00:03:27,120 Speaker 1: sure that the podcast published in the right order. But no, 60 00:03:27,320 --> 00:03:32,600 Speaker 1: Leonardo da Vinci back in experimented with with listening to 61 00:03:33,000 --> 00:03:35,800 Speaker 1: sounds through water. He would in sort a tube into 62 00:03:36,040 --> 00:03:38,600 Speaker 1: into water and put his ear to the two like 63 00:03:38,640 --> 00:03:41,960 Speaker 1: a straw. Yeah, pretty much like a straw larger than 64 00:03:41,960 --> 00:03:44,160 Speaker 1: a straw. Mr da Vinci, why are you listening to 65 00:03:44,200 --> 00:03:49,160 Speaker 1: your drink if you had a drinking problem. So, but yeah, 66 00:03:49,160 --> 00:03:51,200 Speaker 1: he would use this to to kind of listen to 67 00:03:51,440 --> 00:03:54,960 Speaker 1: UH to the two noises, with the idea that if 68 00:03:55,000 --> 00:03:57,560 Speaker 1: you could create the right system, you would be able 69 00:03:57,560 --> 00:04:01,200 Speaker 1: to detect when things were approaching through the water. Now, 70 00:04:01,360 --> 00:04:04,280 Speaker 1: during da Vinci's time, this wasn't really that big a problem. 71 00:04:04,320 --> 00:04:06,880 Speaker 1: Things usually approached on the water, and if they were 72 00:04:06,960 --> 00:04:09,240 Speaker 1: in the water, they weren't really something you needed to 73 00:04:09,280 --> 00:04:14,320 Speaker 1: worry about. The UH frogmen of his day not not 74 00:04:14,520 --> 00:04:17,919 Speaker 1: so effective. But getting all the way up to the 75 00:04:18,040 --> 00:04:22,200 Speaker 1: eighteen or the nineteenth century, rather the eighteen hundreds, UH, 76 00:04:22,600 --> 00:04:26,479 Speaker 1: you started to some some lighthouses would have underwater bells 77 00:04:27,320 --> 00:04:32,239 Speaker 1: that would be UH placed around the area to warn 78 00:04:32,320 --> 00:04:35,640 Speaker 1: ships of of hazards. So ships could actually listen as 79 00:04:35,680 --> 00:04:37,880 Speaker 1: they approached land and they heard bells, they knew they 80 00:04:37,920 --> 00:04:39,960 Speaker 1: were coming up on shoals, and they could they could 81 00:04:40,360 --> 00:04:45,479 Speaker 1: alter their course before running aground. And then UH in 82 00:04:45,839 --> 00:04:50,480 Speaker 1: around nineteen six, UH was an early passive sonar system. 83 00:04:50,480 --> 00:04:53,200 Speaker 1: Will explain what that means UH in a minute. But 84 00:04:53,440 --> 00:04:56,840 Speaker 1: they were using strings of microphones towed by ships, which 85 00:04:56,880 --> 00:04:59,840 Speaker 1: is again something that dates up to the present and 86 00:05:00,040 --> 00:05:04,400 Speaker 1: different form, but by en um and of course thinking 87 00:05:04,400 --> 00:05:07,359 Speaker 1: back on it, that's you know, world War One, the 88 00:05:07,400 --> 00:05:12,320 Speaker 1: British and American scientists had developed an active sonar system. Um. 89 00:05:12,360 --> 00:05:13,839 Speaker 1: You know that that was a big concern at the 90 00:05:13,839 --> 00:05:17,960 Speaker 1: time because of course the German uh U boats were 91 00:05:18,000 --> 00:05:21,719 Speaker 1: patrolling and it was some scary stuff. Yeah, actually it was. 92 00:05:21,880 --> 00:05:24,640 Speaker 1: It was a very intimidating weapon, definitely. I mean there 93 00:05:24,640 --> 00:05:26,800 Speaker 1: had been some sorry I keep kinding, so there had 94 00:05:26,800 --> 00:05:29,800 Speaker 1: been submarines before that, but sure, but the German U 95 00:05:29,800 --> 00:05:32,320 Speaker 1: boats in World War One were a very effective way 96 00:05:32,320 --> 00:05:37,760 Speaker 1: of taking control of the Atlantic Ocean and the shipping 97 00:05:37,839 --> 00:05:40,640 Speaker 1: back and forth between the continents. So sonar was something 98 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:43,880 Speaker 1: that they were very rapidly trying to work out exactly. 99 00:05:43,920 --> 00:05:47,120 Speaker 1: And it's funny because well not funny, but it's it's 100 00:05:47,160 --> 00:05:49,960 Speaker 1: interesting to me that really the the event that kind 101 00:05:50,000 --> 00:05:52,960 Speaker 1: of started all this off wasn't World War One, because 102 00:05:52,960 --> 00:05:56,279 Speaker 1: by then they they were pretty far into it. But 103 00:05:56,320 --> 00:05:59,239 Speaker 1: they did have an interest, yes, yes, to talk about 104 00:05:59,360 --> 00:06:01,719 Speaker 1: to talk about how this really started off. You really 105 00:06:01,720 --> 00:06:03,640 Speaker 1: got to look back to a certain event that happened 106 00:06:03,680 --> 00:06:06,840 Speaker 1: in nineteen twelve. What was that event, Well, there was 107 00:06:06,880 --> 00:06:11,600 Speaker 1: a little boat that happened to sink. Yeah, that little boat. Yeah, yeah, 108 00:06:11,960 --> 00:06:15,640 Speaker 1: don't let go, um my heart will go on. Yeah, 109 00:06:15,640 --> 00:06:20,839 Speaker 1: the Titanic disaster. Titanic disaster. Following that, that's when we 110 00:06:20,839 --> 00:06:25,320 Speaker 1: saw the first patent for underwater echo ranging demands. So 111 00:06:25,360 --> 00:06:28,400 Speaker 1: that was that was where the first patent was filed 112 00:06:28,839 --> 00:06:31,120 Speaker 1: UM and it was filed at the British Patent Office 113 00:06:31,200 --> 00:06:34,960 Speaker 1: by Lewis Richardson, who was a meteorologist UM and he 114 00:06:35,440 --> 00:06:38,239 Speaker 1: had come up with this idea of creating a way 115 00:06:38,600 --> 00:06:42,360 Speaker 1: to locate objects underwater using sound. You would you would 116 00:06:42,400 --> 00:06:46,279 Speaker 1: fire sound out, you would measure the sound that comes back, 117 00:06:46,480 --> 00:06:50,280 Speaker 1: and through that you would figure out what was there, 118 00:06:50,440 --> 00:06:53,240 Speaker 1: how far away it was, whether it was moving or not. 119 00:06:53,600 --> 00:06:55,760 Speaker 1: I mean, these were all the concepts now back in 120 00:06:55,839 --> 00:06:59,240 Speaker 1: nineteen twelve, they didn't really have a way of achieving this. 121 00:06:59,320 --> 00:07:02,400 Speaker 1: He panted to the idea, but it wasn't until like 122 00:07:02,520 --> 00:07:05,360 Speaker 1: Chris said, around nineteen eighteen that we started to really 123 00:07:05,400 --> 00:07:09,600 Speaker 1: see accelerated development because then you had a wartime use 124 00:07:09,680 --> 00:07:11,920 Speaker 1: for it, and it was really important to find a 125 00:07:11,920 --> 00:07:15,040 Speaker 1: way to to detect those submarines those U boats. Yeah, 126 00:07:15,120 --> 00:07:19,120 Speaker 1: icebergs were were obviously concerned, especially in the North Sea 127 00:07:19,240 --> 00:07:23,880 Speaker 1: and areous like that. UM because you know, as as 128 00:07:24,160 --> 00:07:26,360 Speaker 1: is in the case of many cliches, there is an 129 00:07:26,400 --> 00:07:28,200 Speaker 1: element of truth in it. The tip of the iceberg 130 00:07:28,320 --> 00:07:31,640 Speaker 1: really is, you know, the smallest part, and so much 131 00:07:31,640 --> 00:07:33,960 Speaker 1: of it is underwater, and you can't tell without some 132 00:07:34,040 --> 00:07:36,960 Speaker 1: kind of device, and I think that's uh. The earliest, 133 00:07:37,040 --> 00:07:43,120 Speaker 1: earliest sonar or the earliest echolocation devices were not very precise. 134 00:07:43,200 --> 00:07:45,200 Speaker 1: In fact, they were so imprecise that they could tell 135 00:07:45,200 --> 00:07:46,880 Speaker 1: you that there was an iceberg, but could not tell 136 00:07:46,920 --> 00:07:50,520 Speaker 1: you where the iceberg was, So you you might know 137 00:07:50,600 --> 00:07:53,280 Speaker 1: that there's an iceberg somewhere within a two mile radius 138 00:07:53,280 --> 00:07:56,040 Speaker 1: of your ship, which is not entirely helpful, although I 139 00:07:56,040 --> 00:07:58,400 Speaker 1: guess it tells you to keep an eye out so 140 00:07:58,440 --> 00:08:00,920 Speaker 1: that you you don't see it before you hit it. 141 00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:03,240 Speaker 1: You know, you you know, to keep an eye out 142 00:08:03,280 --> 00:08:08,400 Speaker 1: for for icebergs. UM. By the by the time World 143 00:08:08,400 --> 00:08:13,160 Speaker 1: War two came around, that's when the because early sonar 144 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:16,520 Speaker 1: was really led by the British, they made the biggest 145 00:08:16,600 --> 00:08:19,640 Speaker 1: advances in sonar technology. They didn't call it sonar, they 146 00:08:19,640 --> 00:08:23,840 Speaker 1: called it as DICK A S D I c UH 147 00:08:23,880 --> 00:08:26,600 Speaker 1: and UH. The A S D was actually a code. 148 00:08:27,000 --> 00:08:30,200 Speaker 1: It was it was so that the people outside of 149 00:08:30,240 --> 00:08:34,040 Speaker 1: the top secret development wouldn't know what the scientists were 150 00:08:34,080 --> 00:08:36,640 Speaker 1: working on. So people say, well, what does as DICK 151 00:08:36,720 --> 00:08:39,319 Speaker 1: stand for? Well, it kind of stands for keep your 152 00:08:39,320 --> 00:08:42,440 Speaker 1: nose out of it MR. So it wasn't really until 153 00:08:42,440 --> 00:08:45,920 Speaker 1: World War Two that the United States actually outpaced the 154 00:08:45,960 --> 00:08:49,680 Speaker 1: British in this technology. And uh, and that's when you know, 155 00:08:50,360 --> 00:08:53,559 Speaker 1: the term sonar started to pop up, and that eventually 156 00:08:53,600 --> 00:08:57,839 Speaker 1: became the de facto term for the technology. Right right now, 157 00:08:57,880 --> 00:09:00,680 Speaker 1: we should probably uh at this point go into the 158 00:09:00,800 --> 00:09:04,840 Speaker 1: two basic, very very very basic types of sonar, so 159 00:09:04,880 --> 00:09:08,120 Speaker 1: active and passive. Active and passive, And I think passive 160 00:09:08,160 --> 00:09:11,120 Speaker 1: is the easiest one to explain. Yes, basically, you're receiving 161 00:09:11,760 --> 00:09:15,240 Speaker 1: the sounds of the water around you. You're listening, yes, 162 00:09:15,480 --> 00:09:19,840 Speaker 1: so simply listening. So passive passive sonar is where you 163 00:09:19,920 --> 00:09:23,880 Speaker 1: have some sort of sound collection device, usually a hydrophone, 164 00:09:23,920 --> 00:09:25,959 Speaker 1: which is just a microphone that you can use in 165 00:09:26,000 --> 00:09:29,719 Speaker 1: the water. You would have hydrophones placed and you may 166 00:09:29,760 --> 00:09:33,880 Speaker 1: have a couple of different passive sonar stations so that 167 00:09:33,920 --> 00:09:38,280 Speaker 1: you have hydrophones directed in specific areas, so that way 168 00:09:38,320 --> 00:09:40,520 Speaker 1: you can tell where the sound is coming from, not 169 00:09:40,640 --> 00:09:45,000 Speaker 1: just that there is sound, and you listen carefully for 170 00:09:45,559 --> 00:09:49,520 Speaker 1: any kind of indication of other activity in the water. 171 00:09:49,720 --> 00:09:53,880 Speaker 1: And it's interesting because as I was doing my research, 172 00:09:53,960 --> 00:09:58,960 Speaker 1: I discovered that that if you were a trained sonar operator, yes, 173 00:09:59,400 --> 00:10:02,400 Speaker 1: and you heard a submarine. Let's say you're in a 174 00:10:02,400 --> 00:10:06,000 Speaker 1: submarine and you heard another submarine, right, you could actually 175 00:10:06,040 --> 00:10:10,160 Speaker 1: identify where that submarine what was from, based upon the 176 00:10:10,160 --> 00:10:13,920 Speaker 1: sound you heard. Yes, that is correct, it is. That 177 00:10:14,000 --> 00:10:17,000 Speaker 1: is to me as phenomenal. Well, every uh, as I 178 00:10:17,080 --> 00:10:21,560 Speaker 1: understand it, every ship of any kind, submarine or ship 179 00:10:21,679 --> 00:10:24,120 Speaker 1: or you know, I guess boat, depending on what's on 180 00:10:24,160 --> 00:10:28,280 Speaker 1: the boat has its own audio signature. Could be the engines, 181 00:10:29,000 --> 00:10:32,160 Speaker 1: um or basically anything that's going on, if they are 182 00:10:32,160 --> 00:10:35,440 Speaker 1: electronics on board that make a noise, if you know, fans, 183 00:10:35,520 --> 00:10:40,000 Speaker 1: things like that. Some those things can help identify um 184 00:10:40,480 --> 00:10:44,600 Speaker 1: another vessel in the water to the listening vessel. Yeah. 185 00:10:44,640 --> 00:10:47,280 Speaker 1: For example, in the United States, most of the submarines 186 00:10:47,320 --> 00:10:51,439 Speaker 1: were operating on a sixty hurts alternating current power system, 187 00:10:51,440 --> 00:10:55,640 Speaker 1: but in Europe they were operating on fifty hurts power systems, 188 00:10:55,840 --> 00:10:58,520 Speaker 1: So just the the frequency of the sound would be 189 00:10:58,640 --> 00:11:00,760 Speaker 1: enough to indicate to you whether you were listening to 190 00:11:00,840 --> 00:11:05,240 Speaker 1: a US ship or a European ship. And uh, you 191 00:11:05,240 --> 00:11:07,840 Speaker 1: couldn't necessarily if everything was running the way it should, 192 00:11:08,040 --> 00:11:10,079 Speaker 1: you might not hear anything at all, or you might 193 00:11:10,120 --> 00:11:13,480 Speaker 1: hear very little. Um. It was if you didn't sound 194 00:11:13,559 --> 00:11:16,760 Speaker 1: proof all of your equipment, like if if the various 195 00:11:16,800 --> 00:11:22,040 Speaker 1: elements weren't uh weren't insulated properly, then stuff would rattle 196 00:11:22,080 --> 00:11:24,280 Speaker 1: and you could you could actually hear the rattling. In fact, 197 00:11:24,800 --> 00:11:28,040 Speaker 1: one source I read said that, uh, you know, the 198 00:11:28,120 --> 00:11:30,480 Speaker 1: location of a submarine might be given away by someone 199 00:11:30,520 --> 00:11:35,760 Speaker 1: accidentally dropping a wrench onto the floor the deck. I guess, um, 200 00:11:35,840 --> 00:11:37,840 Speaker 1: I assume they're decks and submarines. I've never been a 201 00:11:37,840 --> 00:11:41,520 Speaker 1: board one. Yes, so yes, if you were to drop 202 00:11:41,559 --> 00:11:43,959 Speaker 1: a wrench to the deck, it could create a sound 203 00:11:43,960 --> 00:11:46,360 Speaker 1: that someone another sonar operator might be able to pick 204 00:11:46,400 --> 00:11:50,679 Speaker 1: up and say, all right there there support. Um, so 205 00:11:50,880 --> 00:11:54,360 Speaker 1: it's it's a pretty interesting thing. And passive sonar, by 206 00:11:54,360 --> 00:11:58,760 Speaker 1: the way, was more important for submarines because if they 207 00:11:58,880 --> 00:12:02,520 Speaker 1: use the active method, they would actively be giving away 208 00:12:02,520 --> 00:12:07,559 Speaker 1: their location. Yes, that's because active active sonar systems are 209 00:12:07,720 --> 00:12:13,000 Speaker 1: giving off a pulse of sound yea often called a ping. Yes, 210 00:12:13,200 --> 00:12:16,199 Speaker 1: So you ping the sound out and uh, and then 211 00:12:16,240 --> 00:12:20,720 Speaker 1: they wait for the sound waves to come back. And 212 00:12:20,880 --> 00:12:23,800 Speaker 1: based upon how long it takes uh and how much 213 00:12:23,880 --> 00:12:26,000 Speaker 1: how strong the signal is, that's how you kind of 214 00:12:26,040 --> 00:12:29,000 Speaker 1: determine what it is your your hearing or you know, 215 00:12:29,040 --> 00:12:32,840 Speaker 1: how far away the the object is and you know 216 00:12:32,920 --> 00:12:35,920 Speaker 1: what it might be. You know, how many how many 217 00:12:35,960 --> 00:12:38,640 Speaker 1: submarine movies have you seen where they do that tense 218 00:12:38,679 --> 00:12:41,679 Speaker 1: moment where nobody's moving a muscle they got wait wait, 219 00:12:43,040 --> 00:12:44,840 Speaker 1: you know, and there's just like you know, you watch 220 00:12:44,880 --> 00:12:48,240 Speaker 1: the beads of sweat rolled down the submariners faces. Yes, 221 00:12:48,320 --> 00:12:50,679 Speaker 1: there's the there's the one that I quoted at the 222 00:12:50,720 --> 00:12:54,160 Speaker 1: beginning of this podcast. Um, yeah, no, no that, but 223 00:12:54,240 --> 00:12:56,360 Speaker 1: there are many you know that that. And that's the 224 00:12:56,400 --> 00:12:58,319 Speaker 1: thing is you have to be very very quiet and 225 00:12:58,400 --> 00:13:01,360 Speaker 1: that kind of a situation because any little thing can 226 00:13:01,440 --> 00:13:03,760 Speaker 1: be up by the ping. And here's what's really interesting 227 00:13:04,320 --> 00:13:07,880 Speaker 1: to me is that the ping is well really anything 228 00:13:07,880 --> 00:13:09,880 Speaker 1: could be picked up by passive sonar. I know, I 229 00:13:09,880 --> 00:13:11,920 Speaker 1: just want to make it okay, I got you. I 230 00:13:11,960 --> 00:13:20,000 Speaker 1: was about so active, but with you stopped at one 231 00:13:20,040 --> 00:13:25,000 Speaker 1: of three the active sonar. The basis of that really 232 00:13:26,400 --> 00:13:28,480 Speaker 1: rests in the fact that we know how fast sound 233 00:13:28,480 --> 00:13:34,160 Speaker 1: travels through water. But we we do, but it's really complicated. 234 00:13:34,200 --> 00:13:36,760 Speaker 1: You would think, oh, it's got to be some constant right, 235 00:13:37,280 --> 00:13:41,600 Speaker 1: not exactly actually constantly constant. Yeah, The speed of sound 236 00:13:41,640 --> 00:13:44,640 Speaker 1: traveling through water depends on several things. Depends on the 237 00:13:44,679 --> 00:13:48,000 Speaker 1: temperature of the water, the salinity of the water, and 238 00:13:48,080 --> 00:13:51,160 Speaker 1: the depth of the water, and all of these things 239 00:13:51,240 --> 00:13:54,800 Speaker 1: affect the density of the water. Which makes sense, right. 240 00:13:54,840 --> 00:13:58,160 Speaker 1: If you've got more molecules packed together, sounds going to 241 00:13:58,200 --> 00:14:02,280 Speaker 1: travel faster through that because the molecules hit each other 242 00:14:02,400 --> 00:14:05,360 Speaker 1: more quickly, Like it doesn't take much for a molecule 243 00:14:05,400 --> 00:14:08,400 Speaker 1: they'll run into another molecule. The sound travels much much 244 00:14:08,440 --> 00:14:12,000 Speaker 1: further and much faster. Um if you've got them spread out, 245 00:14:12,320 --> 00:14:15,160 Speaker 1: then they lose some of their energy as they are moving, 246 00:14:15,200 --> 00:14:18,839 Speaker 1: and so it doesn't travels far and it doesn't travels quickly. 247 00:14:20,000 --> 00:14:22,040 Speaker 1: So the rule of thumb is that it's four thousand, 248 00:14:22,120 --> 00:14:26,240 Speaker 1: three eight feet per second. And then you have to 249 00:14:26,320 --> 00:14:29,360 Speaker 1: add all these modifiers in right right now, there are 250 00:14:29,440 --> 00:14:32,760 Speaker 1: some some things that you can do. Uh. There is 251 00:14:32,800 --> 00:14:35,520 Speaker 1: a system that I read about, the a n B 252 00:14:35,680 --> 00:14:39,520 Speaker 1: q H DASH one speed of sound measuring system, which is, 253 00:14:40,440 --> 00:14:44,000 Speaker 1: you know, a modern sonar system. Um. But it evaluates 254 00:14:44,040 --> 00:14:46,360 Speaker 1: the depth and temperature and salinity of the water to 255 00:14:47,120 --> 00:14:50,440 Speaker 1: get an idea of how the speed of sound is 256 00:14:50,440 --> 00:14:54,040 Speaker 1: going to travel through that particular water at the time. Obviously, 257 00:14:54,120 --> 00:14:56,520 Speaker 1: that's probably a very expensive piece of equipment because it's 258 00:14:56,560 --> 00:14:59,560 Speaker 1: doing those calculations for you. But that's what modern computing 259 00:14:59,600 --> 00:15:03,240 Speaker 1: technolo gets you. Um. But yeah, it gives you uh, 260 00:15:03,360 --> 00:15:06,360 Speaker 1: you know, sonar technicians can use that equipment to get 261 00:15:06,400 --> 00:15:09,800 Speaker 1: an idea of what's going on with a lot better accuracy, 262 00:15:09,920 --> 00:15:13,360 Speaker 1: and also helps them avoid being detected by other sonar 263 00:15:13,400 --> 00:15:16,680 Speaker 1: equipment because they have an idea of you know, what's 264 00:15:16,760 --> 00:15:19,840 Speaker 1: the current conditions are underwater where they are right. So 265 00:15:20,000 --> 00:15:22,120 Speaker 1: if you're using active sonar, you might be using it 266 00:15:22,160 --> 00:15:25,920 Speaker 1: for uh. Well if in wartime you would have ships 267 00:15:26,040 --> 00:15:29,400 Speaker 1: and and even aircraft using active sonar to try and 268 00:15:29,400 --> 00:15:32,920 Speaker 1: detect submarines and then drop depth charges down to to 269 00:15:33,160 --> 00:15:37,800 Speaker 1: disrupt the submarines. Ah, yes, uh, so active sonar in 270 00:15:37,880 --> 00:15:41,360 Speaker 1: wartime is often used by by vessels that can move 271 00:15:41,440 --> 00:15:44,200 Speaker 1: fast enough so that it's not it's not a big 272 00:15:44,240 --> 00:15:47,080 Speaker 1: deal about giving away your location like destroyers for example, 273 00:15:47,120 --> 00:15:50,040 Speaker 1: exactly exactly, if you're a submarine, you don't tend to 274 00:15:50,160 --> 00:15:53,840 Speaker 1: use active sonar as often. Um Yeah, especially when you're 275 00:15:53,840 --> 00:15:56,920 Speaker 1: submerged in trying to avoid detection, because that's you can't 276 00:15:56,920 --> 00:16:00,200 Speaker 1: move nearly as quickly as a the enemy destroyer you're 277 00:16:00,240 --> 00:16:04,080 Speaker 1: coming after you. Right, So so if you're also you 278 00:16:04,080 --> 00:16:07,000 Speaker 1: could be using active sonar, not just in wartime, but 279 00:16:07,080 --> 00:16:10,960 Speaker 1: also if you're mapping the ocean floor, then you want 280 00:16:11,040 --> 00:16:13,240 Speaker 1: you want to be as accurate as possible, which means 281 00:16:13,280 --> 00:16:16,040 Speaker 1: you have to have you know, you have to factor 282 00:16:16,080 --> 00:16:17,960 Speaker 1: in all those elements we were talking about before, the 283 00:16:17,960 --> 00:16:20,800 Speaker 1: salinity and temperature and depth and all that. Um. If 284 00:16:20,800 --> 00:16:23,200 Speaker 1: you if you're just using sonar as a fish finder, 285 00:16:23,360 --> 00:16:26,400 Speaker 1: because there are plenty of products on the market that 286 00:16:26,560 --> 00:16:29,520 Speaker 1: do that, you don't have to worry quite that level 287 00:16:29,520 --> 00:16:32,720 Speaker 1: of accuracy because you're not you're usually not talking about 288 00:16:33,080 --> 00:16:35,880 Speaker 1: the same kind of distances involved that we're talking about, 289 00:16:36,440 --> 00:16:39,280 Speaker 1: and usually the you know, the depth is not as 290 00:16:39,320 --> 00:16:43,080 Speaker 1: big a factor. So really in that case, uh, you know, 291 00:16:43,320 --> 00:16:46,520 Speaker 1: you could use a constant speed for the sound through 292 00:16:46,560 --> 00:16:49,960 Speaker 1: water and not be so inaccurate. You're looking for schools 293 00:16:49,960 --> 00:16:52,240 Speaker 1: of fish. You're going to be moving around anyway, so 294 00:16:52,280 --> 00:16:55,520 Speaker 1: it's not like it's um, it's not like the kind 295 00:16:55,560 --> 00:16:58,560 Speaker 1: of precision work you need to do with these other elements, right. 296 00:16:58,560 --> 00:17:00,800 Speaker 1: Actually that that's one of the things that I found 297 00:17:00,840 --> 00:17:05,600 Speaker 1: fascinating during part of the the sent our Technicians training. 298 00:17:06,160 --> 00:17:10,840 Speaker 1: They actually uh are known to record things that are 299 00:17:11,400 --> 00:17:16,760 Speaker 1: just natural sounds, like the sounds of fish, um, tectonic plates. 300 00:17:18,440 --> 00:17:20,600 Speaker 1: I'm not sure. I'm not sure what kinds of sounds 301 00:17:20,600 --> 00:17:25,200 Speaker 1: does give off really low, low groaning ones. Yes, my back, 302 00:17:25,520 --> 00:17:29,480 Speaker 1: but that's but that's the the trick is you once 303 00:17:29,520 --> 00:17:32,719 Speaker 1: they understand what those things are, they can eliminate them. 304 00:17:32,760 --> 00:17:35,520 Speaker 1: They go, oh, well, that's just a large school of fish, 305 00:17:35,560 --> 00:17:38,200 Speaker 1: you know. Oh that's you know, an alien spaceship that's 306 00:17:38,240 --> 00:17:43,040 Speaker 1: crashed underwater, that kind of stuff. Um, I make a joke, 307 00:17:43,240 --> 00:17:46,040 Speaker 1: but no, that that that Uh. I was wondering about 308 00:17:46,040 --> 00:17:48,720 Speaker 1: that when I was reading about civilian uses for so 309 00:17:48,840 --> 00:17:50,480 Speaker 1: in our technology and I was thinking, Wow, how do 310 00:17:50,560 --> 00:17:53,120 Speaker 1: they know, you know, what is a school of fish? 311 00:17:53,160 --> 00:17:56,240 Speaker 1: And obviously if you're on a lake and it's it's 312 00:17:56,240 --> 00:17:58,640 Speaker 1: probably going to be the stuff that's moving around underwater. 313 00:17:58,840 --> 00:18:01,439 Speaker 1: It's not likely to be in any submarine. But you know, 314 00:18:01,960 --> 00:18:05,119 Speaker 1: detecting a fish versus you know, a snake or some 315 00:18:05,280 --> 00:18:10,439 Speaker 1: other type of nest monster. We've gotten very silly, very quickly. 316 00:18:10,720 --> 00:18:13,480 Speaker 1: Well no, I mean people have been using that kind 317 00:18:13,480 --> 00:18:16,720 Speaker 1: of equipment to try and determine whether or not there Yeah, 318 00:18:16,800 --> 00:18:19,880 Speaker 1: so in our equipment. Yes, there are plenty of monster 319 00:18:19,960 --> 00:18:24,520 Speaker 1: hunters who have tried to use like a fish finder, yeah, essentially. 320 00:18:25,080 --> 00:18:27,600 Speaker 1: But that's the thing is that there there are schools 321 00:18:27,640 --> 00:18:30,160 Speaker 1: of fish in Lockness and schools of eels as well. 322 00:18:31,240 --> 00:18:33,400 Speaker 1: So you get a school of fish or a school 323 00:18:33,440 --> 00:18:34,920 Speaker 1: of eels that's going to give you a reading. And 324 00:18:34,920 --> 00:18:37,000 Speaker 1: then people say, hey, look there's a monster down there. 325 00:18:37,040 --> 00:18:40,200 Speaker 1: Not necessarily, And I have to say, you know, I've 326 00:18:40,240 --> 00:18:43,280 Speaker 1: mentioned before in the podcast that I'm a skeptic. Out 327 00:18:43,280 --> 00:18:46,080 Speaker 1: of all the things to be skeptical about, the lucknest 328 00:18:46,119 --> 00:18:48,840 Speaker 1: monster was the one I held onto the longest because 329 00:18:48,880 --> 00:18:51,720 Speaker 1: I want to believe it's real. I don't believe it's real, 330 00:18:51,880 --> 00:18:57,840 Speaker 1: but I want to so badly. Um, in a cottage 331 00:18:57,840 --> 00:19:00,840 Speaker 1: on the shore, there's a shadow on the door. No 332 00:19:01,359 --> 00:19:05,880 Speaker 1: different kinds of sonar like side scan sower. UM. This 333 00:19:06,040 --> 00:19:09,080 Speaker 1: is a device used to find objects on the sea 334 00:19:09,119 --> 00:19:11,280 Speaker 1: floor and figure out what they are. UH. They usually 335 00:19:11,280 --> 00:19:14,320 Speaker 1: have a toe fish or a toebody, which is a 336 00:19:15,040 --> 00:19:18,520 Speaker 1: UM basically a sophisticated device that goes in the water 337 00:19:18,560 --> 00:19:21,199 Speaker 1: and is towed behind the ship, and UH a device 338 00:19:21,280 --> 00:19:24,439 Speaker 1: that processes the signals on the top. UM. What happens 339 00:19:24,480 --> 00:19:28,879 Speaker 1: is they used the the sound energy which is transmitted 340 00:19:28,880 --> 00:19:31,920 Speaker 1: in a fan shaped pattern and UH goes about a 341 00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:37,000 Speaker 1: hundred meters down or so. Basically they used the information 342 00:19:37,040 --> 00:19:40,240 Speaker 1: that comes back to create a an image of what's 343 00:19:40,320 --> 00:19:42,400 Speaker 1: on the sea floor. So if they get a really 344 00:19:42,400 --> 00:19:47,680 Speaker 1: strong signal UM back, that appears as a light image 345 00:19:47,680 --> 00:19:52,760 Speaker 1: on the screen, whereas weaker signal would show darker images. 346 00:19:52,760 --> 00:19:55,720 Speaker 1: So UH sort of a black and white image. I 347 00:19:55,760 --> 00:19:58,399 Speaker 1: don't know if it's actually black and white because I 348 00:19:58,440 --> 00:20:00,480 Speaker 1: was reading copy and they didn't bet but i'd be 349 00:20:00,560 --> 00:20:02,960 Speaker 1: bright green and dull, right right. But you can get 350 00:20:02,960 --> 00:20:06,560 Speaker 1: an idea of what the bottom of the area you're 351 00:20:06,600 --> 00:20:08,040 Speaker 1: looking at. I guess it could be a lake or 352 00:20:08,080 --> 00:20:11,200 Speaker 1: the ocean. UM. They don't they don't offer the same 353 00:20:11,280 --> 00:20:15,280 Speaker 1: kind of depth information as the military would use to say, oh, well, 354 00:20:15,359 --> 00:20:17,719 Speaker 1: we you know, we're about to run aground. It's not 355 00:20:17,840 --> 00:20:21,639 Speaker 1: the same kind of application of sonar. Also, we should 356 00:20:21,680 --> 00:20:24,760 Speaker 1: add that at certain depths, once you get really really deep, 357 00:20:24,800 --> 00:20:28,320 Speaker 1: the water gets so dense that it can refract sound waves. 358 00:20:28,480 --> 00:20:31,400 Speaker 1: So you you start to lose the ability to really 359 00:20:31,440 --> 00:20:36,639 Speaker 1: map the ocean floor with sound because the water itself 360 00:20:36,680 --> 00:20:41,040 Speaker 1: is so dense that it's it's it's mucking things up. Also, 361 00:20:41,119 --> 00:20:42,800 Speaker 1: I guess I should go ahead and mention as well. 362 00:20:42,880 --> 00:20:44,960 Speaker 1: We've talked a lot about the sonar. The sonar really 363 00:20:44,960 --> 00:20:47,439 Speaker 1: has three main elements to it. Oh, yes, there's a 364 00:20:47,480 --> 00:20:50,120 Speaker 1: transmitter which transmits the sun right right right. I can't 365 00:20:50,119 --> 00:20:51,960 Speaker 1: believe we didn't. We didn't really talk about it. But 366 00:20:52,000 --> 00:20:55,640 Speaker 1: there's a transmitter that's that's what passes on the signal. Uh, 367 00:20:55,960 --> 00:20:58,600 Speaker 1: it's an electric signal that goes to a transducer. Now, 368 00:20:58,640 --> 00:21:01,560 Speaker 1: transducers what they do is they convert one kind of 369 00:21:01,680 --> 00:21:04,479 Speaker 1: energy into another kind of energy. In the case of sonar, 370 00:21:04,800 --> 00:21:09,040 Speaker 1: it's converting sound electricity rather into sound right. Active for 371 00:21:09,080 --> 00:21:12,120 Speaker 1: this is for active sonar, clearly. And then you've got 372 00:21:12,119 --> 00:21:14,520 Speaker 1: a receiver that receives the signals when they come back 373 00:21:14,760 --> 00:21:18,440 Speaker 1: um and and then you usually have a display, so 374 00:21:18,560 --> 00:21:21,760 Speaker 1: there's a transmitter, transducer and receiver. This is for again 375 00:21:21,840 --> 00:21:26,440 Speaker 1: active sonar. With the passive sonar, you just need receivers 376 00:21:26,440 --> 00:21:30,199 Speaker 1: really microphones, hydrophones, UM and and there are plenty of 377 00:21:30,320 --> 00:21:35,880 Speaker 1: stationary UH sonar UH stations and I guess stationary stations, 378 00:21:36,480 --> 00:21:39,320 Speaker 1: thank you, Jonathan, you're both repetitive and redundant. But at 379 00:21:39,320 --> 00:21:41,600 Speaker 1: any rate, there are plenty of these in the ocean. 380 00:21:41,680 --> 00:21:45,440 Speaker 1: The lots of different militaries have them station stationed at 381 00:21:45,440 --> 00:21:51,680 Speaker 1: different spots along the coast to detect things like possible 382 00:21:51,760 --> 00:21:55,360 Speaker 1: incoming submarines, that kind of thing. UH. And I wanted 383 00:21:55,359 --> 00:21:59,879 Speaker 1: to mention very quickly about an interesting sound that was detected. 384 00:22:00,040 --> 00:22:03,359 Speaker 1: Oh do you want to? Yes, I do, I definitely 385 00:22:03,359 --> 00:22:07,399 Speaker 1: want to. There was a sound detective in It was 386 00:22:07,400 --> 00:22:12,239 Speaker 1: actually detected several times over the summer of U in 387 00:22:12,280 --> 00:22:17,639 Speaker 1: the Pacific Ocean by by a hydrophone array. And the 388 00:22:17,800 --> 00:22:23,119 Speaker 1: sound was a very low frequency sound generated over a 389 00:22:23,200 --> 00:22:27,720 Speaker 1: pretty extended UH time frame several I think it's several 390 00:22:27,800 --> 00:22:33,320 Speaker 1: minutes long. And it's called the bloop. The bloop is 391 00:22:33,480 --> 00:22:36,560 Speaker 1: UM this odd sound that that we're not really sure 392 00:22:36,600 --> 00:22:40,639 Speaker 1: what made this noise. If it was organic, then it 393 00:22:40,640 --> 00:22:43,199 Speaker 1: would have to be a creature larger than any that 394 00:22:43,240 --> 00:22:46,720 Speaker 1: we've previously identified. So if it were a whale, it 395 00:22:46,760 --> 00:22:49,440 Speaker 1: would have to be such an enormous whale that we've 396 00:22:49,480 --> 00:22:55,679 Speaker 1: never seen it. Uh ever, yeah, so be be ginormous, 397 00:22:55,800 --> 00:22:59,520 Speaker 1: right to use the technical term. It's more likely that 398 00:22:59,600 --> 00:23:04,720 Speaker 1: the blue is a h was some sort of geological byproduct, right, 399 00:23:05,000 --> 00:23:07,639 Speaker 1: But at any rate, this sound was located or the 400 00:23:08,080 --> 00:23:11,440 Speaker 1: location of the sound is probably somewhere around fifty degrees 401 00:23:11,480 --> 00:23:17,000 Speaker 1: south hundred degrees west. What's interesting to lovecraft Ian fans 402 00:23:18,280 --> 00:23:22,399 Speaker 1: is that that's not that far off from the supposed 403 00:23:22,800 --> 00:23:27,160 Speaker 1: coordinates of Realier, which is Cathulu's city of the Deep. 404 00:23:27,560 --> 00:23:31,200 Speaker 1: So some people have jokingly, tongue in cheek, said that 405 00:23:31,560 --> 00:23:36,360 Speaker 1: this noise was dead Cathulu snoring because in his house, 406 00:23:36,400 --> 00:23:40,480 Speaker 1: and really a dead Cathulu lies dreaming. Alright then, and also, 407 00:23:40,840 --> 00:23:43,800 Speaker 1: let's some we can actually play the sounds. So what 408 00:23:43,840 --> 00:23:45,480 Speaker 1: we're gonna do here is we're gonna just take a second, 409 00:23:45,480 --> 00:23:47,600 Speaker 1: we're gonna play the sound. This is a sound that's 410 00:23:47,680 --> 00:23:51,800 Speaker 1: off of the U. S. Government's websites, and it is 411 00:23:51,880 --> 00:24:07,280 Speaker 1: specifically the sound sped up sixteen times. Now, I don't 412 00:24:07,359 --> 00:24:10,119 Speaker 1: know about you, but I think that was Catlu. I 413 00:24:10,240 --> 00:24:12,360 Speaker 1: was pretty certain it was a bunch of people flushing 414 00:24:12,400 --> 00:24:14,280 Speaker 1: all at the same time. Could have also been that 415 00:24:14,320 --> 00:24:16,159 Speaker 1: it might have been during the Super Bowl. Wait, it 416 00:24:16,200 --> 00:24:18,280 Speaker 1: was the summer of ninety seven, so it couldn't have been. 417 00:24:18,640 --> 00:24:20,439 Speaker 1: I don't know anything about sports, but even I know 418 00:24:20,520 --> 00:24:24,600 Speaker 1: it doesn't happen in the summer. It was World Cup. 419 00:24:24,720 --> 00:24:26,760 Speaker 1: It was a World Cup, except that wouldn't have been 420 00:24:27,119 --> 00:24:30,840 Speaker 1: It wouldn't have been a World Cup. Okay, so our 421 00:24:30,880 --> 00:24:34,920 Speaker 1: speculation goes awry. Also, we had someone on Facebook I think, 422 00:24:34,920 --> 00:24:37,440 Speaker 1: asked us about the blue Yes, there that goes and 423 00:24:37,520 --> 00:24:44,480 Speaker 1: that goes out to you random Facebook person. All right, UM, so, uh, 424 00:24:44,520 --> 00:24:46,920 Speaker 1: you know, I did look up some other interesting related 425 00:24:46,960 --> 00:24:51,320 Speaker 1: technology like LDAR, which is a light detected light detection 426 00:24:51,359 --> 00:24:55,600 Speaker 1: and ranging system doesn't use sound, uses light, but it 427 00:24:55,680 --> 00:24:58,879 Speaker 1: is used. Bath Memetric lighter is used to determine the 428 00:24:58,880 --> 00:25:02,480 Speaker 1: depth of water. UM. It uses lasers, pulses of lasers 429 00:25:02,520 --> 00:25:05,600 Speaker 1: sent out at two frequencies. UM. There's an infrared pulse 430 00:25:05,640 --> 00:25:08,680 Speaker 1: which is a lower frequency and then reflects off the surface, 431 00:25:08,840 --> 00:25:10,800 Speaker 1: so you know where the surface of the water is 432 00:25:11,200 --> 00:25:13,720 Speaker 1: and then it uses green lasers that have a higher 433 00:25:13,720 --> 00:25:17,280 Speaker 1: frequency that reflects off the bottom of the area. Interesting, 434 00:25:17,320 --> 00:25:20,680 Speaker 1: and it works pretty similar to echolocation because it's getting 435 00:25:20,720 --> 00:25:22,840 Speaker 1: a reading for the top and the bottom of the depth, 436 00:25:23,240 --> 00:25:24,639 Speaker 1: so you can get an idea of how deep the 437 00:25:24,640 --> 00:25:29,240 Speaker 1: water is. And they use this um from aerially generally, 438 00:25:29,960 --> 00:25:35,639 Speaker 1: well from they're mounted on aircraft. UM so according to 439 00:25:35,640 --> 00:25:40,120 Speaker 1: Noah and I mean the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 440 00:25:40,160 --> 00:25:43,200 Speaker 1: not the guy with the big boat. That's the second 441 00:25:43,200 --> 00:25:45,199 Speaker 1: time you've made that joke on this pod, not this 442 00:25:45,240 --> 00:25:48,000 Speaker 1: particular episode, but in the series. Yeah, well you know, 443 00:25:49,080 --> 00:25:51,080 Speaker 1: but yeah, and depending on how clear the water is, 444 00:25:51,119 --> 00:25:53,600 Speaker 1: they can determine depths up to fifty meters And this 445 00:25:53,680 --> 00:25:58,760 Speaker 1: is really useful for those, uh, really hazardous areas where 446 00:25:59,040 --> 00:26:02,919 Speaker 1: it's might be difficult to get a reading from a vessel, 447 00:26:02,960 --> 00:26:05,879 Speaker 1: a waterborne vessel. It would be dangerous to put a 448 00:26:05,920 --> 00:26:08,760 Speaker 1: ship there, exact reefs and shoals and that sort of thing, 449 00:26:08,800 --> 00:26:11,560 Speaker 1: which is exactly why you'd want to know what it's like, 450 00:26:12,040 --> 00:26:14,280 Speaker 1: you know, underneath the surface of the water, so you 451 00:26:14,320 --> 00:26:17,040 Speaker 1: can get an idea for navigation purpose. I mean, really, 452 00:26:17,119 --> 00:26:20,400 Speaker 1: sonar just don't mean to interrupt. But the reason why 453 00:26:20,440 --> 00:26:23,720 Speaker 1: sonar it was so important early on is because light 454 00:26:23,760 --> 00:26:27,600 Speaker 1: does not travel through water very well. It's just normal light, 455 00:26:27,680 --> 00:26:29,720 Speaker 1: and you know, you go down just a couple hundred 456 00:26:29,760 --> 00:26:33,080 Speaker 1: feet and it's it gets dark really fast. And anybody 457 00:26:33,080 --> 00:26:36,280 Speaker 1: who's swam in the Atlantic Ocean knows that it's not 458 00:26:36,359 --> 00:26:39,920 Speaker 1: exactly the clearest water. Uh So it will be especially 459 00:26:39,920 --> 00:26:42,000 Speaker 1: difficult to see in in you know, water with a 460 00:26:42,000 --> 00:26:45,320 Speaker 1: lot of salinity and trabidity. And of course if you 461 00:26:45,359 --> 00:26:48,880 Speaker 1: get it at pretty intense depths, then you don't want 462 00:26:48,880 --> 00:26:53,040 Speaker 1: to have any windows in your device at all because 463 00:26:53,440 --> 00:26:56,320 Speaker 1: the pressure is too great. Um. Before we get to 464 00:26:56,520 --> 00:26:58,919 Speaker 1: the next segment, I was going to mention too that 465 00:26:58,960 --> 00:27:02,679 Speaker 1: you can you can actually sonar from uh you know, 466 00:27:03,160 --> 00:27:06,000 Speaker 1: from the air as well, if you're using a sona buoy, 467 00:27:07,400 --> 00:27:10,560 Speaker 1: which is basically a buoy that is equipped with sonar 468 00:27:10,600 --> 00:27:13,280 Speaker 1: equipment that is lowered I guess by a helicopter would 469 00:27:13,320 --> 00:27:16,160 Speaker 1: probably be the best. Uh that's where I've actually seen 470 00:27:16,200 --> 00:27:18,959 Speaker 1: it done, where they lower it into you know, so 471 00:27:19,000 --> 00:27:20,760 Speaker 1: there's floating on the surface of the water that they 472 00:27:20,760 --> 00:27:23,879 Speaker 1: can get readings um from anything that might be in 473 00:27:23,920 --> 00:27:26,480 Speaker 1: the area. Yeah, that's pretty cool. That's often used in 474 00:27:26,480 --> 00:27:29,720 Speaker 1: in wartime as well, because it's a way for you know, 475 00:27:29,760 --> 00:27:32,000 Speaker 1: you send a helicopter out to the general region where 476 00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:34,280 Speaker 1: you believe there's a submarine. You use these to try 477 00:27:34,320 --> 00:27:37,119 Speaker 1: and locate the submarine. Then you use the depth charges, 478 00:27:37,160 --> 00:27:39,800 Speaker 1: which are really just explosives that that sink into the 479 00:27:39,800 --> 00:27:44,320 Speaker 1: water before exploding. UM, and then try to damage or 480 00:27:45,359 --> 00:27:48,920 Speaker 1: or disrupt the submarine in some way whereas the submarine 481 00:27:48,960 --> 00:27:52,480 Speaker 1: is trying desperately to or the people in the submarine anyway, 482 00:27:52,560 --> 00:27:55,400 Speaker 1: or trying desperately to avoid detection. Or sometimes they'll use 483 00:27:55,440 --> 00:28:00,440 Speaker 1: things like UM decoy explosions. So you create enough uh 484 00:28:00,640 --> 00:28:03,080 Speaker 1: noise in the water and it becomes very difficult to 485 00:28:03,160 --> 00:28:08,800 Speaker 1: pinpoint a specific object. UM. And I know you wanted 486 00:28:08,840 --> 00:28:12,600 Speaker 1: to discuss that it's not all the sonar is not 487 00:28:12,640 --> 00:28:15,359 Speaker 1: all necessarily beneficial, that it can actually have a negative 488 00:28:15,359 --> 00:28:18,879 Speaker 1: impact on the environment. Right, we're actually the creatures living 489 00:28:18,920 --> 00:28:22,080 Speaker 1: in the environment. We mentioned that that whales and dolphins 490 00:28:22,160 --> 00:28:27,280 Speaker 1: use echolocation in order to navigate their environments. UM. Sometimes 491 00:28:27,440 --> 00:28:31,040 Speaker 1: there have been reports that that the low frequencies used 492 00:28:31,040 --> 00:28:35,920 Speaker 1: in sonar equipment have disrupted that they're this marine life 493 00:28:36,359 --> 00:28:39,880 Speaker 1: that in some cases there may be instances where it 494 00:28:39,960 --> 00:28:43,360 Speaker 1: has spooked a pot of whales, for example, and and 495 00:28:43,680 --> 00:28:47,959 Speaker 1: and so there there's some studies that suggest that some 496 00:28:48,040 --> 00:28:52,480 Speaker 1: whales are suffering from a kind of um uh well, 497 00:28:52,520 --> 00:28:56,680 Speaker 1: sort of a pressurization sickness because they're surfacing so quickly 498 00:28:57,240 --> 00:29:00,920 Speaker 1: that they are uh it's kind of like whales getting 499 00:29:00,960 --> 00:29:03,800 Speaker 1: the bends. Yeah, actually it's exactly like wells getting the bends. 500 00:29:04,120 --> 00:29:08,720 Speaker 1: Because the report I saw was actually from a uh 501 00:29:09,400 --> 00:29:15,400 Speaker 1: uk organization called Marine Connection, which is a pro um 502 00:29:15,720 --> 00:29:20,520 Speaker 1: uh water life organization, and they had cited a study 503 00:29:20,880 --> 00:29:24,520 Speaker 1: from the magazine Nature from two thousand three which was 504 00:29:24,560 --> 00:29:28,959 Speaker 1: citing an instance in which ten beaked whales uh surface 505 00:29:29,040 --> 00:29:33,240 Speaker 1: too quickly off the Canary Islands um in two thousand two, 506 00:29:33,240 --> 00:29:35,880 Speaker 1: and and they got the bends. The whales got the bends. 507 00:29:36,120 --> 00:29:41,360 Speaker 1: And apparently the situation is especially prominent for deep diving 508 00:29:41,680 --> 00:29:45,560 Speaker 1: animals such as a beaked whale. And it may be 509 00:29:45,720 --> 00:29:50,520 Speaker 1: related to the terrain underneath the water. If it's really 510 00:29:50,640 --> 00:29:54,920 Speaker 1: steep um sharp drop off, that may affect the way 511 00:29:54,960 --> 00:29:59,320 Speaker 1: that the sound waves are traveling underwater and maybe especially 512 00:29:59,360 --> 00:30:04,400 Speaker 1: confusing um. Noah also mentioned that there might be problems 513 00:30:04,840 --> 00:30:09,880 Speaker 1: for deep diving species, but said that more study needs 514 00:30:09,920 --> 00:30:12,760 Speaker 1: to be done on on these kinds of strandings to 515 00:30:12,800 --> 00:30:15,800 Speaker 1: find out if it's limited to the surroundings, if it 516 00:30:15,840 --> 00:30:18,880 Speaker 1: actually is the c floor that is playing into it, 517 00:30:19,000 --> 00:30:22,520 Speaker 1: or whether it is strictly the sonar itself, you know, 518 00:30:22,560 --> 00:30:25,239 Speaker 1: before they can make a decision as to what's going on. 519 00:30:25,360 --> 00:30:31,560 Speaker 1: But the Marine Connection has asked the uh, um, they've 520 00:30:31,600 --> 00:30:34,840 Speaker 1: actually gotten involved and suggested to the European Parliament and 521 00:30:34,880 --> 00:30:38,280 Speaker 1: it asked for a ban on high intensity sonar in 522 00:30:38,360 --> 00:30:42,520 Speaker 1: certain areas. Um. So you know, there there are concerns 523 00:30:42,560 --> 00:30:45,800 Speaker 1: that it may cause uh some some harm basically that 524 00:30:45,920 --> 00:30:49,760 Speaker 1: they can swim into uh dangerous terrain to it. That 525 00:30:49,920 --> 00:30:53,040 Speaker 1: is also an issue if they're they're momentarily confused, but 526 00:30:53,080 --> 00:30:56,440 Speaker 1: in dangerous waters, that could be long enough for there 527 00:30:56,440 --> 00:30:59,560 Speaker 1: to be a serious problem. So yeah, there there are 528 00:30:59,600 --> 00:31:03,280 Speaker 1: some concerns about this technology, which we've been using for 529 00:31:03,960 --> 00:31:09,160 Speaker 1: almost a century now, uh yeah, and we're still some 530 00:31:09,240 --> 00:31:11,520 Speaker 1: of them, like the passive systems. Of course, that's not 531 00:31:11,560 --> 00:31:14,200 Speaker 1: a problem because the passive systems, all they're doing is listening. 532 00:31:14,520 --> 00:31:17,560 Speaker 1: They're not sending out any signals, so not all sonar 533 00:31:17,880 --> 00:31:21,320 Speaker 1: is bad sonar even from a marine life standpoint. Oh no, 534 00:31:21,400 --> 00:31:24,600 Speaker 1: it's still an incredibly useful technology, right, you just have 535 00:31:24,680 --> 00:31:27,680 Speaker 1: to learn how to use it responsibly so that you're 536 00:31:27,680 --> 00:31:30,760 Speaker 1: not causing harm to the environment or to marine life 537 00:31:31,560 --> 00:31:34,640 Speaker 1: in particular. Well, I guess that pretty much wraps up 538 00:31:34,640 --> 00:31:36,960 Speaker 1: a discussion on sonar. This was one of the Pallette's 539 00:31:37,120 --> 00:31:40,960 Speaker 1: pet pet topics. He's he likes the topic as well. 540 00:31:40,960 --> 00:31:43,840 Speaker 1: I think the video series brought that out, and they've 541 00:31:43,880 --> 00:31:46,840 Speaker 1: had our radar and sonar moments, so that was a 542 00:31:46,840 --> 00:31:49,680 Speaker 1: lot of fun. If you guys have any suggestions for topics, 543 00:31:49,840 --> 00:31:52,000 Speaker 1: stop by on Facebook or Twitter and let us know 544 00:31:52,160 --> 00:31:56,640 Speaker 1: our handled there is tech Stuff hs W, or you 545 00:31:56,680 --> 00:31:58,920 Speaker 1: can use the old fashioned method of send us an 546 00:31:58,920 --> 00:32:02,920 Speaker 1: email that's text stuff at how stuff Works dot com 547 00:32:02,960 --> 00:32:05,400 Speaker 1: and Chris and I will talk to you again really soon. 548 00:32:09,320 --> 00:32:11,160 Speaker 1: If you're a tech stuff and be sure to check 549 00:32:11,200 --> 00:32:15,040 Speaker 1: us out on Twitter Tech Stuff hs wsr handle and 550 00:32:15,040 --> 00:32:17,720 Speaker 1: you can also find us on Facebook at Facebook dot 551 00:32:17,760 --> 00:32:22,000 Speaker 1: com slash tech Stuff h s W. 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