The project collected three years of baseline data 12 - 60 km offshore of Maryland prior to construction and operation of an offshore wind energy facility. Two main types of sound recording devices that encompassed a range of frequencies were used to detect vocalizations from baleen whales (low frequencies) and toothed whales (high frequencies): the Marine Autonomous Recording Unit (MARU, or pop-up) sampling at 2 kHz and the C-POD (cetacean click detector), which monitors the 20 - 160 kHz frequency range. These were supplemented by additional acoustic recorders during select periods of the study at five sites to provide further information on mid-frequency sounds, such as dolphin whistling behavior. The use of a grid array design for the acoustic detection devices within the Maryland WEA facilitated localization of vocalizing whales to further understand spatial patterns of habitat usage. RESULTS: There is substantial overlap between marine mammals and the Maryland WEA, but this varies seasonally. While the risk to endangered whales is lowest during the summer, the risk to bottlenose dolphins may be highest at this time, as they are most abundant in the summer time. The year-round occurrence of marine mammals offshore of Maryland will require decision-makers to consider the trade-off of the potential impacts

Passive acoustic monitoring recorders were deployed off the coast of Virginia to collect two years of acoustic data from 2015 - 2017 to determine the acoustic presence of four focal whale species: North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis), minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata), fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) and humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae). Previously collected acoustic data from 2012, 2013 and 2015 supplemented the dataset and both seasonal and annual trends in temporal and spatial distribution were found for all four species of baleen whales. Baseline ambient noise measurements were analyzed to provide context for potential risks to whales associated with the construction and development in the offshore wind energy area. In addition, spatial and temporal trends in odontocete presence were analyzed. Offshore wind energy development in coastal Virginia waters may pose risks to marine mammals that use the habitat, both through acute risks of ship-strikes or construction-related activities such as pile driving, and chronic risks from increased exposure to noise. Passive acoustic monitoring can provide insight into the spatial and temporal distribution of whale species in the study area and can characterize the baseline ambient noise of the environment to assess potential risks to marine mammals.

Passive acoustic monitoring recorders were deployed off the coast of Virginia to collect two years of acoustic data from 2015 - 2017 to determine the acoustic presence of four focal whale species: North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis), minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata), fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) and humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae). Previously collected acoustic data from 2012, 2013 and 2015 supplemented the dataset and both seasonal and annual trends in temporal and spatial distribution were found for all four species of baleen whales. Baseline ambient noise measurements were analyzed to provide context for potential risks to whales associated with the construction and development in the offshore wind energy area. In addition, spatial and temporal trends in odontocete presence were analyzed. Offshore wind energy development in coastal Virginia waters may pose risks to marine mammals that use the habitat, both through acute risks of ship-strikes or construction-related activities such as pile driving, and chronic risks from increased exposure to noise. Passive acoustic monitoring can provide insight into the spatial and temporal distribution of whale species in the study area and can characterize the baseline ambient noise of the environment to assess potential risks to marine mammals.

Passive acoustic monitoring of the ocean ambient sound field is a critical aspect of NOAA's mandate for ocean and coastal stewardship. This includes detecting and characterizing: (1) sounds produced and used by living marine resources (e.g., endangered marine mammals); (2) natural sources of noise from physical oceanographic processes; and (3) anthropogenic noise sources that contribute to the overall ocean noise environment. Noise generated by anthropogenic activities (especially commercial shipping and seismic oil & gas exploration) is increasingly being recognized as a potential threat to marine mammals which are protected in the U.S. by the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act. Current scientific data suggest that increased ambient noise levels impact marine mammals by hindering communication (Hatch et al. 2012), altering communication behavior (Parks et al. 2013), altering locomotive behavior (Pirotta et al. 2013), and inducing stress (Rolland et al. 2012). Additional concerns associated with the degraded acoustic quality of diverse habitats broaden these concerns to include possible repercussions for fish and invertebrate species, many of which NOAA manages as commercially-harvested, protects as resources within sanctuaries, or studies as key elements to sustaining healthy ecosystems. For these reasons it is important for science-based regulatory agencies including NOAA to monitor long-term trends and changes in the ambient sound field. The objective of the proposed project is to establish a network of initially ten ocean noise reference stations in U.S. waters to monitor long-term changes and trends in the underwater ambient sound field (McDonald et al. 2006). Our plan is to deploy identical autonomous acoustic recording systems developed in-house at PMEL at each reference station to ensure proper calibration and consistency of the collected data sets.

To understand natural and anthropogenic sound in the ocean, and to compare underwater soundscapes globally, standard methods of analysis must be applied to passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) data. Methods that balance constrained volume and adequate resolution of acoustic spectra have recently been published (Martin et al., 2021a,b). A community effort supported by NOAA, BOEM, U.S. Navy, and ONR was initiated to apply these methods to PAM datasets from around the world. These data are hybrid millidecade (HMD) spectra of sound levels derived from calibrated passive acoustic data. Daily HMD at 1 minute resolution were created using standalone MANTA software (v9.6.13) from audio data recorded by the SanctSound monitoring project at various sites.

The collection and analysis of passive acoustic data supports research into the soundscape of marine environments. Primary uses include detecting and characterizing sounds produced and used by living marine resources, natural sources of noise from physical oceanographic processes, and anthropogenic noise sources that contribute to the overall ocean noise environment. This analysis supports a wide range of activities including marine mammal stock assessments, monitoring of earthquake and geological activity, and assessing impacts of anthropogenic noise on marine life. The goal of this collection is to steward an accessible national archive of passive acoustic data available to researchers and the public, and to assist NOAA in meeting their data management and accessibility requirements.

This record represents the raw passive acoustic data collected by NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS) Sound Monitoring Program. ONMS maintains a nationally coordinated underwater sound monitoring network across the National Marine Sanctuary System. We work with partners to study sound within ten existing and two proposed national marine sanctuaries off the US East Coast, in the Gulf of Mexico, off the West Coast and in the Pacific Islands region.The ONMS Sound network supports the program's understanding and protection of sanctuaries including restoration efforts, effectiveness of and compliance with regulations, quantifying sanctuary usages and assessing human impacts

DCLDE Workshops are intended for exchanging information that advances our understanding of acoustic methods to detect, classify, locate, track, count, and monitor marine mammals in their natural environment. The goal is to encourage interdisciplinary approaches to solve real-world problems related to the study of marine mammals and the effects of human activities. The DCLDE 2015 dataset consists of data from multiple deployments of high-frequency acoustic recording packages deployed in the Southern California Bight. Separate sets of development data are provided for mysticetes and odontocetes. The mysticete data have been decimated to 1 and 1.6 kHz bandwidth and the odontocete data bandwidth consists of data with 100 and 160 kHz of bandwidth. Data were selected to cover all four seasons and from multiple locations. High-frequency datasets consist of annotated data from multiple odontocete species. Included is Baird’s beaked whale (Berardius bairdii), Cuvier’s beaked whale (Ziphius cavirostris), Sperm whale (Physeter macrorhynchus), Pacific white-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obliquidens), Risso’s dolphin (Grampus griseus), unspecified porpoise (Phocoenidae), and odontocete other than those described above (Odontoceti). The goal for this dataset is to identify acoustic encounters of a species during times when animals were echolocating. Low-frequency datasets consist of annotated data for specific calls from two mysticete species, blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) D calls and fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) 40 Hz calls. The goal for this dataset is to identify specific blue whale D and fin whale 40 Hz calls.

Glacier Bay National Park is conducting underwater passive acoustic monitoring to characterize the underwater sound environment including weather generated sounds, biologics, and vessel noise, for the purpose of basic science as well as management applications. The data are collected using a calibrated ITC type 8215A broadband omnidirectional hydrophone with a nominal sensitivity -174 dB re 1 volt per 1 micropascal (Gavial ITC Inc., Santa Barbara, CA, USA) mounted on an anchoring tripod 1 m above the seafloor (30.2 m depth). A 5-mile cable runs from the hydrophone back to a computer at Park headquarters where automated samples are collected and real-time audio is broadcast on a speaker.

These data represent the raw passive acoustic data collected from Acoustic and Environmental Observation Network (AEON) in the U.S. Northwest Atlantic, which was developed and deployed in February 2021. This network of five observation nodes complements existing oceanographic monitoring infrastructure in the Gulf of Maine. The network provides simultaneous, long-term monitoring of soundscapes and multiple acoustically-relevant parameters such as marine mammal behavior and prey concentration at key locations where changes in the Labrador and Gulf Stream currents are projected to affect the Gulf of Maine.