FULL PRESENTATION SPEAKING SCRIPT
Slide 1 – Title
“Good morning/afternoon everyone.
I’m Aswathy I R, and today I’ll be presenting my work on Upper Ocean Variability and Stratification in
the Western Bay of Bengal and its Implications for Acoustic Tomography.
This work was carried out as part of my [Link]. Oceanography at CUSAT, under the guidance of Dr.
Sanjana M C from NIOT, Chennai.
The focus of this study is to understand how ocean stratification and circulation influence
underwater sound propagation, which is critical for acoustic tomography.”
Slide 2 – Introduction
“The Bay of Bengal is a highly dynamic and unique ocean basin.
It is strongly influenced by the reversing South Asian monsoon and receives massive freshwater input
from major rivers like the Ganga and Brahmaputra. Because of this, it has some of the lowest sea
surface salinity values in the world.
Now, this is important because sound speed in the ocean depends on both temperature and
salinity. So, unlike other tropical oceans, salinity plays a major role here.
Another key point is that subsurface salinity structures—like intrusions—cannot be detected by
satellites, since they only measure the top few centimeters. However, these subsurface features
significantly affect sound propagation.
In addition, the East India Coastal Current, or EICC, reverses direction seasonally and becomes very
strong, especially during the northeast monsoon.
All of this makes the Bay of Bengal an ideal, but complex, region for applying Ocean Acoustic
Tomography, which motivates this study.”
Slide 3 – Objectives
“So based on this, the objectives of my study were:
First, to examine upper ocean stratification and its seasonal variability using parameters like Mixed
Layer Depth, Isothermal Layer Depth, Barrier Layer Thickness, and Sonic Layer Depth.
Second, to analyze seasonal and monthly variability in upper ocean currents along the east coast of
India, especially for acoustic applications.
Third, to identify a suitable location for monitoring subsurface ocean variability.
And finally, to perform acoustic propagation modeling using realistic sound speed profiles that
include both spatial and temporal variability.”
Slide 4 – Study Region
“The study focuses on the east coast of India, particularly around three reference stations:
Cuddalore, Nellore, and Vizag.
From Nellore, I defined four radial transects at 60°, 80°, 100°, and 120°, each extending 500 km
offshore.
Along these transects, 20 analysis points were selected using Argo float locations.
This setup allows us to capture both alongshore and offshore variability in ocean structure.”
Slide 5 – Data and Methods
“For this study, I used two main datasets.
Surface currents were obtained from CMEMS GLORYS reanalysis, covering the period from 2021 to
2025.
Thermohaline profiles were taken from Argo floats between 2013 and 2025.
The data was grouped into four seasons: pre-monsoon, monsoon, post-monsoon, and winter.
Key ocean parameters like MLD, ILD, and BLT were calculated using standard density and
temperature criteria.
Sound speed was computed using the Mackenzie equation.
Finally, acoustic propagation was modeled using the OASES model, incorporating current effects
through effective sound speed.”
Slide 6–7 – Stratification Profiles
“Now moving to stratification results.
Along Axis 60° and 80°, we see very strong seasonal contrasts.
During the post-monsoon, there is an extreme freshwater cap, especially along Axis 60°, which leads
to a very shallow mixed layer—almost near zero.
In contrast, pre-monsoon conditions show warmer surface temperatures and deeper sound speed
minima.
Along Axis 80°, winter clearly shows a subsurface salinity intrusion between 100 and 180 meters,
forming a sharp halocline.
Now for Axis 100° and 120°:
The monsoon season produces the deepest mixed layers, reaching up to around 74 meters due to
strong wind mixing.
Pre-monsoon shows high salinity near the surface, indicating Arabian Sea water intrusion.
And along Axis 120°, the post-monsoon halocline is the sharpest, which is very important acoustically
because it can trap sound.”
Slide 8 – Salinity Structure
“To better visualize this, we look at vertical salinity sections.
Along Axis 60°, the post-monsoon freshwater cap is very prominent.
In winter, a subsurface salinity tongue appears between 100 and 150 meters.
Along Axis 80°, this intrusion is even stronger, with high salinity water penetrating deeper—up to 180
meters.
This creates a strong vertical salinity gradient, which significantly affects sound speed.”
Slide 9 – MLD, ILD, BLT
“Summarizing the stratification metrics:
The minimum mixed layer depth occurs during post-monsoon, dropping to just 1 meter due to strong
freshwater stratification.
The maximum mixed layer depth occurs during the monsoon, reaching about 74 meters due to wind-
driven mixing.
Barrier Layer Thickness is highest in winter, up to 34 meters, due to freshwater overlying saltier
water.
In pre-monsoon, the barrier layer disappears, and the system becomes thermally dominated.”
Slide 10–12 – Surface Currents
“Now looking at surface circulation:
The East India Coastal Current shows a clear seasonal cycle.
In January, it flows equatorward.
By March and April, it reverses and flows northward during the pre-monsoon.
During the monsoon, the organized current breaks down and is replaced by cyclonic eddies.
Then in November, during the northeast monsoon, the EICC reaches its peak strength—over 1 meter
per second southward off Nellore.
This strong variability is critical for acoustic applications because currents directly affect sound travel
time.”
Slide 13 – Monthly Currents & OAT Link
“From the monthly analysis, November shows the strongest EICC signal.
Pre-monsoon months show a clear reversal and reorganization of the current.
During monsoon, eddies dominate instead of a structured current.
Now importantly, this current variability produces measurable acoustic effects.
Using the relation for travel time difference, we estimate about 0.22 seconds over a 500 km path,
which is well within detection limits of acoustic tomography.”
Slide 14 – Ocean Acoustic Tomography
“Ocean Acoustic Tomography is a technique that uses sound signals to measure ocean properties
over large distances.
Sound travels faster in warm and saline water, and slower in cold or fresh water.
By transmitting signals between two points and measuring travel time, we can infer temperature and
currents.
Reciprocal transmission allows us to separate current effects from temperature effects.
In this study, I used the OASES model, including both range-independent and range-dependent
approaches, with realistic sound speed inputs derived from Argo data.”
Slide 15–16 – Acoustic Propagation
“Now looking at acoustic propagation results:
In the pre-monsoon case, using a 500 Hz source, the signal attenuates quickly and dies out within
about 40 km.
This is due to high surface sound speed and deeper thermocline causing energy loss.
In contrast, during post-monsoon, using a 200 Hz source, the signal travels up to 100 km—about 2.5
times farther.
This is because the freshwater cap creates a surface duct that traps sound.
Also, lower frequency signals propagate further than higher frequencies.
We also observe multi-path propagation due to strong stratification, which is useful for tomography
because it provides multiple independent travel paths.”
Slide 17 – Conclusion
“To conclude:
The Bay of Bengal shows four distinct seasonal stratification regimes.
Post-monsoon conditions produce extremely shallow mixed layers due to freshwater input.
Winter shows strong barrier layers and subsurface salinity intrusions, which are not visible in satellite
data but are acoustically important.
The EICC shows strong seasonal variability, peaking in November with significant impact on acoustic
travel time.
Acoustic modeling confirms that post-monsoon conditions are most favorable for long-range
propagation due to surface ducting.
Finally, Nellore is identified as the optimal site for future Ocean Acoustic Tomography experiments
due to strong currents, clear stratification, and favorable acoustic conditions.”