Sonar

Sonar

Sonar is a method or device for detecting and locating objects especially underwater by means of sound waves sent out to be reflected by the objects also. A device for detecting the presence of a vessel like submarine, by the sound it emits in water. NOAA scientists primarily use sonar to develop nautical charts, locate underwater hazards to navigation, search for and map objects on the seafloor such as shipwrecks, and map the seafloor itself.

A maximum operating range of 10 to 100 kilometers is typical. In comparison, passive sonar simply listens to underwater sounds, which includes: natural turbulence, marine life, and mechanical sounds from submarines and surface vessels. Since passive sonar emits no energy, it is ideal for covert operations. Sonar can kill you if you are close enough to it. The U.S. Navy's sonar emits 235-decibel pressure waves of unbearable pinging and metallic shrieking.

At 200 Db, the vibrations can rupture your lungs, and above 210 Db, the lethal noise can bore straight through your brain until it hemorrhages that delicate tissue. After it's conception and development during World War I, sonar is finally finding use in an unlikely medium which is space. Astronauts on the International Space Station will soon be able to conduct experiments in zero gravity with no container contamination using beams of sound to control a sample.