KINGSTON, R.I. – Oct 22, 2026 – According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the ocean covers about 71 percent of the Earth’s surface – yet much of our underwater world is unmapped and unseen. However, research conducted by University of Rhode Island associate professor of ocean engineering Lora Van Uffelen utilizing acoustic propagation holds promise to discover more of the ocean’s interior. Acoustic propagation is the process by which sound waves move through a medium like air, water, or solid objects.
Her project, “Acoustic Propagation and Geo-Positioning in Polar and Temperate Ocean Environments,” was recently awarded a three-year, $929,000 grant from the Office of Naval Research. The goal is to improve understanding of long-range acoustic propagation.
“It’s very exciting that there is so much interest in this work,” said Van Uffelen, who directs URI’s Ocean Platforms, Experiments and Research in Acoustics (OPERA) lab, which uses autonomous underwater vehicles as acoustic receiving platforms as well as in data collection. “This type of research is highly specialized and requires knowledge of physics, signal processing and oceanography as well as ocean engineering.”
On the project is post-doc researcher, Luis Pomales Velázquez, who recently completed his Ph.D. at URI’s Graduate School of Oceanography working with the College of Engineering’s Van Uffelen in this field of study. Van Uffelen and Velázquez are also collaborating with the Scripps Institute of Oceanography in La Jolla, California, and the Nansen Environmental Remote Sensing Centre in Bergen, Norway.
The work funded by the grant will investigate the impact of oceanographic variability on the specific pattern of sound that arrives at a receiver after traveling hundreds of miles in the ocean. Acoustic propagation in a changing Arctic is a challenging environment—the Arctic Ocean remains under-sampled due to logistical constraints and harsh environmental conditions. Relatively little is known about sound propagation in the Arctic environment and what is known is largely outdated, a product of work done during the Cold War era.
The research will involve a push toward automation for algorithms for underwater acoustic geo-positioning. Developing adaptive algorithms that compensate for characteristics of the ocean environment can help to improve acoustic ranging and geo-positioning. These algorithms will be tested in both temperate and polar ocean environments. Data collected using mobile autonomous platforms will be used to further understand how sound can map the interior temperature of the ocean.
Establishing techniques for acoustic data processing and automated real-time ranging for oceanographic buoyancy floats makes them a reliable tool for long-range acoustics. There are relatively few floats currently in the Arctic ocean; however, valuable data has been collected from beneath the Arctic sea ice. Floats can operate under sea ice for months, collecting oceanographic profiles that are not transmitted until they emerge. Van Uffelen says that acoustic methods can be used to provide a geo-referenced position, which is important for data assimilation into oceanographic models.
The ability to interpret acoustic signals in real time from these underwater devices when GPS or radio communication signals are unavailable is of particular interest. Navies rely heavily upon acoustic sensors and systems, and their performance in various regions of the ocean. Utilizing datasets from more well-studied and easier accessed areas, such as in the northern Pacific, will support better prediction models of acoustic propagation and help to quantify the impact of oceanographic variability on acoustic ranging uncertainty.
Van Uffelen builds on a long history of research supported by ONR’s Ocean Acoustics program. Much of her work is performed in the recently opened ocean robotics lab on URI’s Narragansett Bay Campus but will also include travel to various locations for data collection and testing.
This story was written by Krysta Murray, writer, College of Engineering.