A Simulation Study of Multi-path Characteristics of Acoustic Propagation in the Strait of Hormuz

Multi-path interference due to boundary reflection in shallow water acoustic communication poses a major obstacle to reliable and high-speed underwater communication system. In this study, initially 3D variations of field data such as sound speed, temperature and salinity in horizontal transects of the Strait of Hormuz were analyzed using the ROPME data. Later, data on typical sound speed profiles of winter and summer of 1992 for the Strait of Hormuz was analyzed using ArcGIS software environment. Authors adopted a fast-field program to simulate the delay time and amplitude fluctuation of multipaths under different hydrographic conditions. Simulation results revealed the relationships between delay time and amplitude, and typical hydrographic parameters, such as sound speed gradient, travel distance and channel depth, which provided a valuable guide for the practical designing of shallowwater wireless acoustic communication system.