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cranial_prolapse420 t1_j6im054 wrote

Reply to comment by SamtheCossack in TIL that sperm whales are the loudest animal on Earth, and their clicks can literally kill you with sound by g1ucose

It's a unit of measurement used to express the ratio of one quantity to another. The medium has nothing to do with it.

To convert between dB in water and air, just subtract 26dB from the measured water SPL. This is necessary because sound measured in air uses a reference level of 20upa @ 1m, water has a reference level of 1upa @ 1m.

I'd also argue whale vocalizations are likely omnidirection, since it's a method of communication and would be pretty ineffective if you had to aim it across an ocean and hope someone happened to be on the receiving end.

Still wondering which unit you'd prefer to use?

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SamtheCossack t1_j6imhpy wrote

The 230 dB vocalizations are not for communication, they are for locating prey in the deep ocean. They are directed down, and used to locate the optimal location for the whales next dive. Communication clicks are considerably less energetic (Though still powerful).

I am not saying decibels aren't the right measurement, I am saying comparing the two on a 1 to 1 basis doesn't paint a useful picture of what is happening.

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cranial_prolapse420 t1_j6iv5os wrote

Fair enough, sorry to be a pendantic jackass. It's morning where I'm at; coffee had not yet occured.

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