Keith R. Curtis
Bruce M. Howe
Shaun Leach
Appl. Phys. Lab., Univ. of Washington, Seattle, WA 98105
Low-frequency ocean ambient noise spectra have been collected at U.S. Navy Pacific SOSUS sites during the last year as a background component of the Acoustic Thermometry of Ocean Climate (ATOC) Program. Preliminary results are presented. Three-minute averaged spectra were obtained every 5 min; only the relative noise level as a function of frequency is presented because (at this time) unknown offsets prevent determination of absolute levels. One important statistic estimated is the probability as a function of frequency that the noise level exceeds a specified spectral level. [Work supported by the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program through ARPA.]