Vertical correlation characterization of acoustic fields in the deep sea

Vertical correlation characterization of underwater acoustic fields is the physical basis of matched-field localization and an important parameter to design vertical array sonars for spatial gain. The dependence of vertical correlation on ocean environment, working frequency, range and depth of source, and depth and separation of hydrophones, etc. is studied experimentally in the deep sea. The comparison of experimental results with the numerical simulations of vertical correlation shows the applicability to localize underwater sources using vertical correlation of acoustic fields.