Building a sound library of the sea

The study of the sea and its sounds is not an easy activity. Scientists claim that it is a poorly studied field, requiring short-term work. Many marine species are suffering from pollution not only environmental, but also sound that has an impact on their welfare states. The sea, its natural environment, is also affected by this sound misalignment.

About the project

The Technological University, through its Research Group in Energy, Materials and Sustainability, is starting a project innovative in Chubut. That has to do with the development of a library of marine sounds.

Field work is taking place in the waters of the Gulf Nuevo, located in Puerto Madryn. A whaling entrepreneur, Pinino Orri, is collaborating to concretize the first sound samples. Thus, during the departure of his boats, the tourist emperor places hydrophones at fixed points to obtain the samples.

All that sound data is being identified and stored in a database, which will then be formatted as a library. This will be free of charge for the entire technological and scientific community. Also for curious people, interested in knowing how a boat sounds under the sea, or how the sound of a whale is.

About hydrophones

Also called underwater microphones, hydrophones are devices prepared to capture and locate aquatic sounds. These act as electroacoustic transducers, capable of converting sound vibrations, at audible frequencies.

A curious fact about these devices is that, unlike the microphone, allow to adapt to different pressures of the sea. They usually do measure between 30 centimeters and two meters long.

Its function is clear. They allow to capture the sounds of marine fauna, and determine its environment and location. This is veryimportant in the study of protected species. Thanks to hydrophones, it is possible to know in depth the causes of disappearances and/or emerging problems among species.

Laura Exposito

Madrynense y argentina. Lic. en RRPP (UP), especializada en Comunicación e Identidad Corporativa (UNIR) y docente universitaria. Apasionada por la comunicación en todas sus expresiones, porque como dice Paul Watzlawick “Todo Comunica”… las palabras, las reacciones y nuestro cuerpo. Mi desafío profesional es cuidar de “ese todo”, aportando mis conocimientos y gestionando las herramientas necesarias para que las comunicaciones fluyan como las olas del mar.