2019_programme: HYDROACOUSTIC DETECTIONS BY CTBTO PERTINENT TO THE MISSING ARGENTINE SUBMARINE ARA SAN JUAN

Back


  • Session: 08. Comprehensive nuclear test-ban treaty monitoring
    Organiser(s): Haralabus George, Zampolli Mario, Nielsen Peter
  • Lecture: HYDROACOUSTIC DETECTIONS BY CTBTO PERTINENT TO THE MISSING ARGENTINE SUBMARINE ARA SAN JUAN [invited]
    Paper ID: 933
    Author(s): Haralabus Georgios, Nielsen Peter L., Zampolli Mario, Le Bras Ronan, Mialle Pierrick, Bittner Paulina, Poplavskiy Alexander, Rozhkov Mikhail, Tomuta Elena, Bell Randy, Grenard Patrick , Taylor Tammy , Meral Özel Nurcan
    Presenter: Haralabus Georgios
    Presentation type: oral
    Abstract: The Argentine submarine ARA San Juan went missing offshore the San Jorge Gulf, Argentina, on 15th November 2017. CTBTO analysed data acquired by hydroacoustic stations of its International Monitoring System (IMS) with the intent to contribute information which could be relevant to the search for the missing submarine. Two IMS hydroacoustic hydrophone stations, namely HA10 in the Atlantic Ocean and HA04 in the southern Indian Ocean, recorded an impulse-like signal of unknown nature which originated in the vicinity of the last known location of the ARA San Juan. The distance travelled by the signals, following different geodesic paths through diverse underwater environments until they reached the two IMS stations, was approximately 7000 kilometres, In spite of the significant impact of the ocean waveguide propagation on these signals, the localization accuracy of the detections was confirmed by a calibration experiment that used a depth charge deployed by the Argentine Navy north of the search area two weeks later. The night between the 16th and 17th November 2018, the ARA San Juan was found on the seabed at 900 metres depth, very close to the location indicated by CTBTO. This presentation provides an overview of the hydroacoustic monitoring system of the IMS, summarizes the equipment and analysis employed in this case, demonstrates the strong low-pass filtering and time dispersion induced on the signals by the waveguide and compares data and modelling pertinent to this case.
  • Corresponding author: Dr Haralabus Georgios
    Affiliation: Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO)
    Country: Austria
    e-mail:

Back