Seabed Variability and Its Influence on Acoustic Prediction Uncertainty

: Long-term goals are to assess and characterize uncertainty in the tactical naval environment. In littoral warfare, the seabed and its variability is a controlling factor in sonar system performance. To assess uncertainty in shelf environments, the two critical steps are: (1) Characterize seafloor variability; and (2) Assess the impact of seafloor variability on acoustic prediction uncertainty.