Geologists probe the seabed for oil and gas using seismic air guns. The sounds produced by them can exceed 200 decibels - this value is deadly for humans. Noise travels four times faster in water than it does in air (at almost 1.5 km/s), so it can "travel" considerable distances. How noise kills and interferes with communication The rumble of a seismic airgun can cause permanent hearing loss, tissue damage, and death in animals near it. In 2017, studies showed that a single shot from it resulted in an increase in zooplankton mortality from 18% to 40–60% in a 1.2 km section of the Pacific Ocean off the coast of southern Tasmania.
The use of sonar has also resulted in mass stranding of several Russia WhatsApp Number List species of whales in Central America, Europe and East Asia. Examination of the dead animals revealed that they had sustained injuries indicative of decompression sickness (nitrogen bubbles formed in the blood at high pressure). of a sharp deep dive of whales due to fright from the noise. The sounds made by large marine mammals have the same low frequency range as most sounds made by humans. Thus, the roar from the ship's engines blocks the signals of many inhabitants of the ocean.
The noise from shipping has led marine mammals to develop a new strategy: they use longer and more repetitive sounds or wait until the noise level subsides. Some whales have stopped singing altogether in the water due to constant interference. How to solve a problem The good news is that negative consequences can be avoided - just muffle the source of the sound. Technological developments in shipbuilding, such as reducing cavitation (the formation of air bubbles on the propeller surface), are already reducing the noise levels produced by ships. Studies have also shown that reducing the average speed of commercial vessels by as little as 4 km/h can reduce the amount of underwater noise by more than.