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Shaggy_One t1_iyqn0v8 wrote

All I can think of is that one video explaining just how absurdly loud sonar is. Like 200db+ on the high end iirc. Enough energy to instantly boil water surrounding the sonar device if turned up too high.

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Ichthyologist t1_iyqw6yz wrote

I used to clean boat hulls as a side gig. One day I was getting started on a coast guard cutter and they'd forgotten to turn off the passive sonar. That thing clicked and I could feel it in my skeleton. I can't imagine what the active sonar is like for an animal evolved to hear under water.

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mostly_kittens t1_iyrhexh wrote

Passive sonar doesn’t generate any noise.

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Ichthyologist t1_iysatsr wrote

Ah, my mistake. That makes sense. Maybe he said their low gain sonar or something to that effect. I'm going by what I felt and what I remember the seaman telling me six years ago. I'm a biologist, not a sailor.

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Coppastona t1_iyrg9uq wrote

This is true, most large vessels (at least naval vessels) have ramp-up procedures on their sonar to mitigate this as much as possible.

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