Tracking baleen whales with a single Ocean bottom seismometer
Résumé
Baleen whales produce strong and stereotyped songs which are often recorded by Ocean Bottom Seismometers (OBS). As they combine hydroacoustic and seismic sensors, these instruments provide a good opportunity to track the whales from their songs. This study aims at developing a long-range tracking method of baleen whales, based on methods previously developed for ship tracking (Trabattoni 2020). The main goals are:
- to accurately estimate the distance of the source using the multipath propagation, and improve the usual detection range;
- to estimate the source azimuth using the 3-components seismometer;
- to combine the distance and azimuth information to rebuild the whale trajectory.