abstract:The SOFAR channel (short for Sound Fixing and Ranging channel), or deep sound channel (DSC), is a horizontal layer of water in the ocean at which depth the speed of sound is at its minimum. The SOFAR channel acts as a waveguide for sound, and low frequency sound waves within the channel may travel thousands of miles before dissipating.
Becauseof the couplingbetweensurfacechannelandSOFARchannel, sound propagationin two, axisunderwaterchannel is complex and calculationof acoustic fields is difficult.