Surveillance Towed-Array Sensor System (SURTASS) The AN/UQQ-2 Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System (SURTASS) is a towed array

sonar system of the United States Navy. SURTASS began as development program in 1973 using the new research vessel Moana Wave. In 1980 SURTASS passed OPEVAL. The new Stalwart class ocean surveillance ships had the first contract awarded on 26 September 1980 and were similar to the prototype ship, the Moana Wave. Initially the SURTASS system were passive, receive only sonar systems. The array was towed miles behind the ships and were designed for long range detection of submarines. As the passive systems were being deployed, an active adjunct known as the SURTASS Low Frequency Active (LFA) systems was designed for long range detection. The active system must be used in conjunction with the passive received system. The active component transmits an audio signal between 100 Hz and 500 Hz from an array suspended below the ship while the passive SURTASS array is towed miles behind to receive the signal after it had reflected off the submarine. The active LFA system is an updated version of the fixed low frequency surveillance system known as Project ARTEMIS. Although the Navy took steps to mitigate against environmental damage, environmental NGO's urged the Navy to prepare a public environmental impact statement. In 1996 the Navy published a notice of intent to prepare an evnvironmental impact statement. The Navy has spent over $16 million on scientific research on the effects on marine mammals and mitigation systems as well as the development of an Environmental Impact Statement.[1] SURTASS Twin-Line consists of either the long passive SURTASS array or the Twinline array consisting of two shorter passive arrays towed side by side. The Twin-line Engineering Development Model was installed on USNS Assertive (T-AGOS-9), and the first production model was installed on USNS Bold (T-AGOS-12).[2] Both ships are no longer serving as SURTASS units. USNS Able (T-AGOS-20) aft view of SURTASS equipment. As of 2009, SURTASS was deployed on the four T-AGOS 19 Victorious class and single T-AGOS 23 Impeccable class Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull (SWATH) vessels. Low Frequency Active Sonar

The SURTASS Low Frequency Active Sonar system, onboard Impeccable, commenced sea trials in late February 2004. During the spring and summer of 2004, Impeccable conducted five training missions in the Philippine Sea and the northwest Pacific Ocean. All LFA sonar operations included the operation of the High Frequency / Marine Mammal Mitigation sonar and compliance with all mitigation requirements. [1]

Total operational days onboard the Impeccable using the LFA array: (August 15, 2003 to August 15, 2004) 26.2 days with 63.0 hours of transmissions (August 15, 2004 to August 15, 2005) 9.4 days with 22.7 hours of transmissions (August 15, 2005 to August 15, 2006) 22.5 days with 39.4 hours of transmissions.[2]

The ship had five years of active and passive operations in the Western Pacific before the incident in the South China Sea.

[edit] SURTASS LFA sonar description SURTASS LFA is a long-range, all-weather, sonar system that operates in the low frequency (LF) band (100500 hertz [Hz]). There is presently two SURTASS LFA sonar systems, one each onboard the USNS Impeccable and Able (T-AGOS-20), both operating in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. These systems have both passive and active components. The active system component, LFA, is an adjunct to the passive detection system, SURTASS, and is planned for use when passive system performance proves inadequate. LFA is a set of acoustic transmitting source elements suspended by cable from underneath a ship. These elements, called projectors, are devices that produce the active sound pulse, or ping. The projectors transform electrical energy to mechanical energy that set up vibrations or pressure disturbances within the water to produce a ping. The characteristics and operating features of LFA are:

The source is a vertical line array (VLA) of up to 18 source projectors suspended below the vessel. LFAs transmitted sonar beam is omnidirectional (i.e., a full 360 degrees) in the horizontal (nominal depth of the LFA array center is 120 m [400 ft]), with a narrow vertical beamwidth that can be steered above or below the horizontal. The source frequency is between 100 and 500 Hz (the LFA systems physical design does not allow for transmissions below 100 Hz). A variety of signal types can be used, including continuous wave (CW) and frequency-modulated (FM) signals. Signal bandwidth is approximately 30 Hz. The source level (SL) of an individual source projector is approximately 215 decibels (dB). The sound field of the LFA array can never be higher than the SL of an individual projector. The typical LFA transmitted sonar signal is not a constant tone, but a transmission of various waveforms that vary in frequency and duration. A complete sequence of transmissions is referred to as a ping and lasts from 6 to 100 seconds, although the duration of each continuous frequency transmission is never longer than 10 seconds.

Duty cycles (ratio of sound on time to total time) are less than 20 percent20 percent is the maximum physical limit of the LFA system. Typical duty cycles are approximately 7.5 to 10 percent. The time between pings is typically from 6 to 15 minutes.

The passive, or listening, part of the system is SURTASS, which detects returning echoes from submerged objects, such as submarines, through the use of hydrophones. These devices transform mechanical energy (received acoustic sound wave) to an electrical signal that can be analyzed by the signal processing system of the sonar. The SURTASS hydrophones are mounted on a horizontal receive array that is towed behind the vessel. The array length is 1,500 m (4,900 ft) with an operational depth of 150 to 460 m (500 to 1,500 ft). The SURTASS LFA ship must maintain a minimum speed of approximately 6 kilometers per hour (km/h) (3 knots) through the water in order to tow the hydrophone array in the horizontal plane. The return signals or echoes, which are usually below background or ambient noise level, are then processed and evaluated to identify and classify potential underwater targets.[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surveillance_Towed_Array_Sensor_System

Surveillance Towed-Array Sensor System (SURTASS) The Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System (SURTASS) is an element of the Integrated Undersea Surveillance System, providing mobile detection, tracking, and reporting of submarine contacts at long range. SURTASS was developed and deployed in the early 1980s as the mobile, tactical arm of the IUSS, providing long range detection and cuing for tactical weapons platforms against both diesel and nuclear powered submarines. With the SOSUS Arrays being placed in a standby status (data available but not continuously monitored), SURTASS must provide the undersea surveillance necessary to support regional conflicts and sea lane protection. Ocean Surveillance Ships conduct submarine hunting patrols and counter drug missions. Ships on Submarine hunting duty employ a towed sonar array. Data is transmitted from the ship to an acoustic processing site ashore via satellite. Stalwart class ships were designed to search for foreign submarines. Several have since been assigned as drug interdiction forces. Victorious class ships are built on a Small Waterplane Twin Hull (SWATH) design for stability at low speeds and in rough waters. Existing baseline SURTASS suites on monohull-hull T-AGOS ships are being deactivated and T-AGOS 19 and 23 class vessels will replace them. The new vessels

feature a small water-plane area twin hull (SWATH) design which provides quieting to enhance performance of the reduced diameter array and greater stability in high sea states for the LFA source array. T-AGOS 23 class ships are larger than T-AGOS 19 ships in order to handle the larger and heavier equipment for the LFA system. Original procurement was projected for up to five T-AGOS 23 class ships; the current program is in flux, but will certainly be more modest, due to extensive delays by shipyard problems with construction of the $60,000,000 lead ship whose delivery has slipped to the end of 1998. The SURTASS block upgrade will back-fit into T-AGOS 19 (currently with a baseline system) and will be the sensor suite (passive receive only) for T-AGOS 20 through 22. Eventually T-AGOS 19 through 22 will also have a capability to receive and process bistatic LFA signals. The current, or baseline, sensor is a long array of hydrophones towed by a dedicated non-combatant ship designated T-AGOS. There are two upgrades.

The SURTASS Block Upgrade expands the capabilities of this towed array passive acoustic data collection and analysis system installed on T-AGOS Monohull and SWATH-P ships. The block upgrade improves the passive-only sensor with advancements against quiet threats including improved sensitivity and signal processing and use of a reduced diameter hydrophone array. The upgrade adds the Reduced Diameter Array (RDA) and a Commercial-Off-TheShelf (COTS) processing system to provide increased detection capability, more flexible and higher resolution spectrum analysis, and improved target bearing. A communication upgrade will provide additional UHF SATCOM voice and data connectivity between T-AGOS and tactical platforms. SURTASS Low Frequency Active (LFA) is the active adjunct to this towed array. The low frequency active (LFA) upgrade is a long-range active sonar designed to detect even quieter threats in the future. The LFA system includes a large source array for active transmissions and the array of the block upgrade as a separate receiver. In its final configuration, SURTASS LFA will include the block upgrade. LFA adds an active transmit array and handling system, power amplification and control systems, an active signal processing and display receive system, and an environmental analysis system to the SURTASS Upgrade. A prototype LFA system has been installed on a leased commercial vessel, Cory Chouest, and operated as an interim fleet LFA asset pending delivery of the T-AGOS23/SWATH-A, which will be equipped with LFA. New smaller active-source technologies are also under investigation for potential applications in a Compact LFA (CLFA) system suitable for backfitting into existing SURTASS ships. These upgrades provide improved shallow-water operational capability in support of littoral warfare. Open system architecture provides expandability and flexibility while lowering procurement and life cycle costs.

The SURTASS Block Upgrade has been installed on four SWATH-P T-AGOS ships and two Monohull T-AGOS. The remaining monohull received the Block Upgrade in FY 1997-1998. Other SURTASS development efforts include: twin-line array processing, improved detection and classification/passive automation to counter quieter threats; additional signal processing and bi-static active capability; integrated active and passive operations; improved Battle Group support; and improved information processing. SURTASS has experienced recent passive and active success against diesel submarines operating in shallow water. A prototype twin-line SURTASS array was tested during 1996 in a variety of locations around the world, with positive results. It is far superior to any other shallow-water passive towed-array system. SURTASS processing is being transferred to the AN/SQQ-89 towed-array sonar system to provide an immediate increase in detection capability without the need to modify or procure additional wet-end hardware. The minimum fleet requirement of eight SURTASS ships is funded through the FYDP. Functional improvements are delivered to the Fleet in software "Builds". Build #1 (FY 95) includes source-set formulation and analysis tools, automated line trackers and nuclear source auto- detector. Build #2 (FY 96) includes wideband energy trackers, wideband/narrowband feature association, and diesel Full Spectrum Processing (FSP). Build #3 (FY 97) includes automated localization and tracking, diesel automated detection and twin-line integration. SURTASS is a non-military program staffed by civilian "operations personnel" contracted to SPAWAR, who operate and maintain the mission equipment under the operational command of Commander Undersea Surveillance (CUS). The SURTASS equipment is primarily deployed in Auxiliary Oceanographic Survey ships (T-AGOS) that are staffed by civilian mariners under contract to the Military Sealift Command (MSC). The Military Sealift Command operates ships manned by civilian crews and under the command of a civilian master. These ships, indicated by the blue and gold bands on their stack, are "United States Naval Ships" vice "United States Ships" as is the case of commissioned ships. SURTASS is comprised of a worldwide network of ship and shore systems designed to do undersea surveillance. This complex network of mission dedicated equipment and systems routinely requires replenishment, upkeep, maintenance, and service to be accomplished by IOSC resident personnel. To this end, several "remote" facilities have been established to provide "bases" of operation in support of the SURTASS mission. Although operations are based in Norfolk Virginia, SURTASS routinely operates from ports in Glasgow Scotland, Rota Spain, Yokohama Japan, Pearl Harbor Hawaii, Port Huneme California, and many other ports of opportunity. SURTASS's Pacific operations are coordinated from the IUSS Operations Support Detachment (IOSD) located at the facility within NRaD Activity, Pacific in Pearl City, Hawaii. SURTASS is greatly reducing costs by consolidating logistics support, using Non-Developmental Items and

commercial hardware, and increasing operator efficiency through computer aided detection and classification processing.

General Characteristics, Stalwart Class Builder: Tacoma Boatbuilding, Tacoma, Wash. Power Plant: Diesel-electric, twin shaft, 1,600 shaft horsepower. Length: 224 feet (68 meters) Beam: 43 feet (13 meters) Displacement: 2,262 tons (2,056 metric tons) Speed: 11 kts (12.7 mph, 20 kph) Ship: USNS Stalwart (T-AGOS 1) USNS Indomitable (T-AGOS 7) USNS Prevail (T-AGOS 8) USNS Assertive (T-AGOS 9) USNS Bold (T-AGOS 12) USNS Capable (T-AGOS 16) Crew: 18 civilians and 15 Navy personnel

General Characteristics, Victorious Class Builder: McDermott Marine, Morgan City, Lou. Power Plant: Diesel electric, twin shaft, 1,600 shaft horsepower Length: 234 feet (72 meters) Beam: 94 feet (28 meters) Displacement: 3,396 tons (3,087 metric tons) Speed: 16 kts (18.4 mph, 29.6 kph) Ship: USNS Victorious (T-AGOS 19) USNS Able (T-AGOS 20) USNS Effective (T-AGOS 21) USNS Loyal (T-AGOS 22) Crew: 22 civilians and 12 Navy personnel

General Characteristics, Impeccable Class Builder: American SB, Tampa, FL; and Halter Marine, Gulfport, MS. Power Plant:4 Diesel electric, twin shaft, 5,000 shaft horsepower

Length:281.5 feet (86.6 meters) Beam: 95.75 feet (29.6 meters) Displacement:5,362 tons (4,875 metric tons) Speed: 12 kts ( 14 mph, 22 kph) Ship: USNS Impeccable (T-AGOS 23) USNS ______ (T-AGOS 24) USNS ______ (T-AGOS 25) USNS ______ (T-AGOS 26) USNS ______ (T-AGOS 27) Crew: 26 civilians and 19 Navy personnel Sources and Resources

Cetaceans Do Not Have Standing To Sue the Government to Challenge Navy Use of SURTASS / LFA, appeals court ruling in The Cetacean Community v. George W. Bush, October 20, 2004 Navy completes first T-AGOS class ship littoral warfare upgrade March 10, 1999 -- SPAWAR is inserting the second generation of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) equipment into the SURTASS baseline. USNS BOLD recently became the first T-AGOS ship to complete this upgrade.

http://www.fas.org/irp/program/collect/surtass.htm Integrated Undersea Surveillance System (IUSS) The Integrated Undersea Surveillance System (IUSS) is comprised of fixed, mobile, and deployable acoustic arrays that provide vital tactical cueing to ASW forces. IUSS provides the Navy with its primary means of submarine detection both nuclear and diesel. With the advent of submarine warfare and it's impact on Allied forces and supply lines in WWII, the need for timely detection of undersea threats was made a high priority in Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW). As technology of the time progressed, it was recognized that shore-based monitoring stations were the answer to the problem since they could be made basically impervious to destruction, foul weather, and ambient self-generated noise. Since the early 1950s the Atlantic and Pacific oceans have been under the vigilence of the Sound Surveillance System (SOSUS), with long acoustic sensors (hydrophones) installed across the ocean bottom at key locations. With the development of quieter submarines and counter-tactics to evade SOSUS, newer technologies have been implemented over the years to "keep up with the threat". Faster processors, higher capacity storage devices, and "cleaner code" has enabled the

advancement of the art of locating undersea threats. Currently, the Integrated Undersea Surveillance System (IUSS) uses all of these advancements in the Fixed Surveillance System (FSS), Fixed Distributed System (FDS), and the Advanced Deployable System (ADS). The program has undergone a major transition from emphasis on maintaining a large dispersed surveillance force keyed to detection and tracking of Soviet submarines to a much smaller force that is effective against modern diesel and nuclear submarines in regional/littoral or broad ocean areas of interest. Work stations, enhanced signal processing, and modern communication technologies enable remote array monitoring, which reduces manpower costs and improves efficiency. Under operational command of the U.S. Navy's Commander Undersea Surveillance (CUS) IUSS shore systems are staffed and operated by uniformed U.S. Navy personnel. System life cycle and engineering support is provided by carreer civil servants (NISE East Code 341) and contractor personnel located at the IUSS Operations Support Center (IOSC). NRaD provides software maintenance support for IUSS field subsystems. In CY 94, NRaD successfully completed testing of the IUSS Block 3 software in NRaD's Surveillance Test and Integration Center (STIC). The operational demonstration of SPOTLIGHT at the Dam Neck Validation Center (DSVC) began on 1 December with operator training, with the demonstration continuing through the month. The SPOTLIGHT ATD successfully concluded with this demonstration, and transition of the technology is scheduled for implementation in the Surveillance Direction System. The deployment and maintenance of the undersea components of the IUSS shore systems is accomplished by technicians and engineers operating from IUSS Cable Support Ships. Sources and Methods

IUSS Operations Support Center (IOSC) [really nice!!] IUSS Fixed (Shore) Systems IUSS Operations Support Center (IOSC) Command History NRaD Technical Document 2735E (Electronic Version of NRaD TD2735)June 1995 Acoustical Society of America Some Interesting Sounds Acoustical Society of America Abstracts from recent ASA meetings Acoustical Society of America

http://www.fas.org/irp/program/collect/iuss.htm

The SOund SUrveillance System, or SOSUS, is a fixed component of the U.S. Navy's Integrated Undersea Surveillance Systems (IUSS) network used for deep ocean surveillance during the Cold War. Installation of SOSUS was begun in the mid 1950s by the U.S. Navy for use in antisubmarine warfare. A brief history of the development of SOSUS can be found here. SOSUS consists of bottom mounted hydrophone arrays connected by undersea communication cables to facilities on shore. The individual arrays are installed primarily on continental slopes and seamounts at locations optimized for undistorted long range acoustic propagation. The combination of location within the oceanic sound channel and the sensitivity of large-aperture arrays allows the system to detect radiated acoustic power of less than a watt at ranges of several hundred kilometers. http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/vents/acoustics/sosus.html SOund SUrveillance System (SOSUS): General Information In October, 1990, the Navy granted approval to NOAA/PMEL to access the SOSUS arrays in the North Pacific to assess their value in ocean environmental monitoring, as part of the U.S. government's dual-use initiative. SOSUS Pages: SOSUS Main Page Acquisition System Description Scientific Applications References The data collection systems developed by NOAA's VENTS Program have been in place since August 29, 1991. Acoustic signals from the north Pacific Ocean are monitored and recorded at the Newport, Oregon facility of NOAA/PMEL. This is the primary tool for both continuous monitoring of low-level seismicity around the northeast Pacific Ocean and real-time detection of volcanic activity along the northeast Pacific spreading centers in support of the VENTS research program in ocean hydrothermal systems. Real-time ridge crest monitoring potentially permits the timely on-site investigation of hydrothermal and magmatic emissions. Data acquisition is accomplished by combining portions of the Navy's processing facilities with NOAA-designed systems installed at the U.S. Naval Ocean Processing Facility (NOPF) at Whidbey Island, Washington. Analog outputs from each hydrophone element are available either through direct cabling or remote data linkage. Navy systems perform adaptive beam forming on digitized hydrophone signals, with the outputs converted back to analog electrical signals. These analog hydrophone and beam-former outputs are accessed by the NOAAsupplied systems, where the signals are low-pass filtered, digitized, and temporarily buffered on hard disk. The digital data are provided to a wide-area network (WAN) based on Network File System (NFS) protocol, linking (by encrypted, dedicated telephone line) the acquisition computer to an analysis system located at NOAA laboratories in Newport, Oregon.

http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/vents/acoustics/sosus_gen.html The original data acquisition system ("PHONE"), installed on August 29, 1991, accessed individual hydrophones from arrays throughout the North Pacific and provided omni-directional coverage of low-level seismicity (mb > 2.4) in the entire North Pacific basin. Two channels were allotted for each array, collecting individual hydrophone elements from the two ends of each array. The omni-directional nature of the hydrophones allow detection of sources at any bearing, and the availability of the pair of signals allows calculation of the arrival bearing. By combining arrival time and arrival bearing on several arrays, common events can be associated automatically within software. By combining all of the hydrophone element signals with predefined phase lags for each element based on their relative locations and local sound speed, an acoustic "beam" can be formed, oriented in any direction. The "BEAM" system, installed June 22, 1993, accessed formed-beams from six hydrophone arrays trained on the northeast Pacific seafloor spreading system from the Mendocino to the Sovanco Fracture Zones. The signal gain obtained through beam forming allows the detection of seismic events with source magnitudes as low as 1.8. This system was continuously analyzed to provide immediate detection of significant seismo/acoustic events of potential interest, including volcanic dike injections and eruptions, and was the basis of several successful event response efforts. On October 12, 2000, changes in the Navy's electronics configuration resulted in the loss of beamformed outputs to dual users. At that time, the two NOAA/PMEL data acquisition systems were combined into a single system ("WHIDBEY") that collects multiple hydrophone elements at 256 Hz sampling rate. The data are transferred, digitally beamformed, and displayed at PMEL in Newport. Although more effort, the new configuration allows complete flexibility in beamforming. In performing this upgrade, PMEL and University of Washington Applied Physics Laboratory engineers made accommodations to allow future dual users to easily assess all hydrophone elements from all systems. http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/vents/acoustics/sosus_acq.html Seismic Monitoring "T-wave" refers to a relatively high-frequency waterborne seismic phase generated by submarine earthquakes. ("T" corresponds to tertiary, since these waterborne phases travel slower than solid-earth P- (primary) and S- (secondary) waves, and therefore arrive third on seismograph records.) Waterborne "T-waves" propagate more efficiently than solid-earth body waves due to the presence in most of the global ocean of an acoustic wave guide , commonly referred to as the SOFAR (SOund Fixing And Ranging) channel. Relative to solid-earth seismic waves that propagate spherically, acoustic waves within the oceanic SOFAR channel propagate cylindrically and can therefore travel great distances with little attenuation (Figure 1). The finite thickness of

the wave guide results in inefficient propagation below 2 Hz, but at higher frequencies small seismic events can be detected at ranges of thousands of kilometers. Direct, indirect, and theoretical methods have been applied to data from various sources to estimate the detection thresholds of fixed hydrophone systems. These thresholds, when combined with frequency-magnitude scaling relationships derived from the global networks, provide predictions of the mean number of events expected for the Juan de Fuca Ridge system. The results indicate that while the global networks are limited to a detection threshold of mb = 4.2 and 1 event/year; earlier work with PMR/MILS hydrophones and analog techniques was limited to Mb = 3.4 and 15 events/year; SOSUS hydrophones combined with digital signal processing techniques can detect a minimum Mb = 2.5 and 265 events/year, perhaps as low as 2.4 as indicated by events recorded from northern California; and beam forming of the SOSUS arrays can reduce the detection threshold to Mb = 1.8-2.1 and 1,000-2,000 events/year. Marine Mammal Monitoring The same systems used for seismic monitoring are capable of detecting vocalizations from large marine mammals at long ranges, in the open ocean, an environment where very little is known about their behavior, distribution, and habitat preferences. In the case of large blue whales, accurate locations can be derived for individual animals at ranges of several hundred kilometers by applying mathematical matched filters to the acoustic signals. Other species under study include fin whales, humpback whales, Minke whales, and potentially other large whales such as Sei's whales, Bryde's whales, and sperm whales. Acoustic Thermometry In support of the seismic program, a low-power acoustic beacon was installed on Axial Seamount in August, 1993. This known acoustic source projects twice per day to allow calibration of ocean sound speed models. The travel time is routinely derived for each SOSUS array at ranges of up to 3600 km. . The resulting time series provide a means of monitoring acoustic travel times within the oceanic sound channel over thousands of kilometers. http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/vents/acoustics/sosus_apps.html
Active Sonar detects objects underwater by sending out a sound pulse or ping that bounces off the target and returns as an echo the system can detect. Some marine mammals use a natural echo-location system to navigate and find food prey.

Active sonar transmitter below a surface ship sends out pulses of sound that bounce off a submarine underwater and are detected as returning echoes. SURTASS The Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System (SURTASS) is a low frequency passive surveillance system that is deployed on surface ships with acoustic data collection and analysis capabilities. SURTASS provides passive detection of quiet nuclear and diesel submarines and real-time reporting of surveillance information to theater commanders. The system consists of a long acoustic array, which is towed by a surface ship and carries environmental sensors, electronic components, and hydrophones that can detect underwater sound signals. LFA The Low Frequency Active (LFA) system will be used when a target is too quiet to be detected by the passive (SURTASS) system alone. LFA is a set of acoustic transmitters suspended by cable beneath a surface ship. These projectors produce an underwater sound pulse or ping, much as a stereo speaker turns electrical impulses into audible sound waves in the air.

http://www.surtass-lfa-eis.com/Description/index.htm
The Navy Fleet Commanders in Chief (CINCs) have determined that SURTASS LFA sonar is a crucial element of the Navy's anti-submarine warfare (ASW) force and is an asset required for our national security. SURTASS LFA sonar will be employed in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act, Marine Mammal Protection Act, Endangered Species Act, Coastal Zone Management Act, and Presidential Executive Order 12114 (Environmental Effects Abroad of Major Federal Actions). LFA sonar must transmit high intensity sound in order to detect submarines at long range. LFA sonar uses sound levels similar to the mid-frequency tactical sonars, which have been used worldwide for over 50 years.

It is highly unlikely that sound levels below 180 dB will cause injury to marine mammals or other marine life. Click here to read a paper explaining this in more detail. Undersea earthquakes and even lightning strikes generate powerful low frequency sounds. Many whale species also produce loud, low frequency sounds. These natural phenomena were part of the environment in which marine mammals evolved. This helps to explain why the whales exposed to LFA sonar signals during the Low Frequency Sound Scientific Research Program exhibited less response than the scientific team anticipated. To provide an objective analysis of potential effects from LFA sonar on marine life, a team of independent marine biologists was engaged to conduct research and provide technical evaluations. The Navy provided no direction to their scientific protocols. Their scientific findings were published with no Navy review in advance. The Navy has spent over $16 million conducting scientific research and developing an Environmental Impact Statement, including the development of a state-of-the-art marine mammal mitigation system. Monitoring and mitigation measures will reduce to a negligible level the risk of harm to any marine mammal from LFA sonar.

http://www.surtass-lfa-eis.com/KeyFacts/index.htm

Low-Frequency Active (LFA)

The U.S. Navy plans to deploy a new submarine detection system, known as Low Frequency Active Sonar (LFA), throughout 80% of the world's oceans. LFA is based on the fact that very low frequency sound [100-1000 Hz] can travel great distances and detect quiet submarines. The LFA system uses intense sound, reportedly at levels in the range of 235 decibels or greater [the Navy has given a figure of 160 dB at about 2 km from the LFA] generated by massive sound transmitters towed behind TAGOSclass ships. Current passive SURTASS towed array sonars are limited in their capability to detect quiet submarines. Thus research has been going on for some time in the area of low frequency active (LFA) towed array sonar. LFA offers the potential for TAGOS ships to make longer range detections of quiet submarines. The shallow-water acoustics problem has risen in importance due to the increased salience of regional conflicts where the US Navy may to encounter slow, diesel submarines close to shore. The shallow-water, slow submarine is significantly more difficult to detect and classify acoustically than the cold war threat, due to the complex propagation, high clutter, and low target Doppler. Effective sonar performance requires new processing algorithms which cannot be implemented on current Naval platforms due the high processing requirements. A Hybrid Digital/Optical Processor (HyDOP) is to demonstrate the feasibility of using embedded scalable high performance digital and optical processing to solve this problem. This requires application

of computationally intensive algorithms which cannot be implemented in real time using conventional processors. A high-speed optical correlator being developed by the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) will act as a coprocessor to an Intel Paragon XP/S-25 computer. LFA has been under development for more than a decade, and has been tested perhaps 25 times in several oceans since 1988. The Navy has already tested LFA for over 7,500 hours. IOT&E of LFA was completed in October 1992, in the Gulf of Alaska, testing an engineering development model (EDM) of the LFA system installed in a converted, monohull research vessel. COMOPTEVFOR found the SURTASS LFA system potentially operationally effective and potentially operationally suitable. BBN has developed the ARTS array vehicle concept specifically to address the formidable problems of low-frequency active sonar sources. The array creates a dish shaped pattern of very loud, low frequency, variable broadband sound (235 dB re 1 Pa @ 100-1000 Hz) that reaches out roughly 100 miles. The towed array is deployed about 100 meters deep at three knots, pulsing on a 10% duty cycle. In recent experiments, Low-Frequency Active (LFA) system has detected submarines at long ranges. The first LFA ship, TAGOS 23, is under construction. Four dedicated vessels are planned, divided between the Atlantic and Pacific Fleets In the interim, a leased ship, Cory Chouest, is being used as a fleet asset to test and validate LFA technologies. In addition, compact acoustic source technologies are under development that will provide a 50% reduction in weight and power requirements. Successful maturing of these technologies will allow LFA-type arrays to be deployed from existing TAGOS 19-class vessels. Critics of LFA, such as the Natural Resources Defense Council [NRDC], charge that it will expose marine mammals to noise pollution at a level 200 billion times greater than that which is known to disturb them. Several years ago the $40 million acoustic thermometry of ocean climate (ATOC) program of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, CA proposed to operate a low frequency underwater sound

source in the heart of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Although ATOC proposed to generate noise at a level of only 195 decibels, NRDC successfully intervened to stop this research program pending further study of the effects of low-frequency sound on marine mammals. The Navy has agreed to NRDC's request that an EIS be prepared for the LFA program. The LFA Draft Environmental Impact Statement is due in August 1997, and is being written by the contractor for the system. The American Oceans Campaign has been working in coalition with a number of other environmental groups to keep tabs on government and industry underwater sound generation.
Sources and Resources

Cetaceans Do Not Have Standing To Sue the Government to Challenge Navy Use of SURTASS / LFA, appeals court ruling in The Cetacean Community v. George W. Bush, October 20, 2004 SURVEILLANCE TOWED ARRAY SENSOR SYSTEM (SURTASS) DOT&E FY 95 Annual Report Hybrid Digital/Optical Processor R. A. Dukelow, R. M. Hidinger Naval Command, Control and Ocean Surveillance Center, San Diego, CA Currents: The Unquiet Oceans Todd Preston E-Magazine (March-April 1997) Navy Noises Continue William Rossiter Cetacean Society International Whales Alive! Vol. VI No. 1 January 1997 Sound Sound Policies and the LFA William Rossiter, CSI President Whales Alive! Vol. V No. 4 October 1996 Navy's secret weapon no longer running silent Jean-Michel Cousteau Planet ENN 19 August 1996

http://www.fas.org/irp/program/collect/lfa.htm

www.dosits.org