Integral Scientists Measure Changes to Soundscape during COVID-19

Integral acoustic buoy deployed near the once bustling Alameda, California.

The marked changes in human activity as a result of widespread shelter-in-place orders are having unexpected consequences such as reductions in atmospheric emissions from vehicles and lower noise levels in once bustling cities.

Integral scientists are currently studying changes in both in-air and underwater soundscapes as a result of markedly reduced airline, shipping, and vehicle traffic in San Francisco Bay (see Figure 1 below). In-air and underwater acoustic recorders were recently deployed near Alameda to gather data in the coming weeks. By comparing measured sound levels to those during typical human activity levels, Integral scientists will be able to document changes in sound and wildlife levels due to this unprecedented reduction in human use of San Francisco Bay.

For more information, contact Kaus Raghukumar at kraghukumar@integral-corp.com.

Figure 1. Ship port calls at San Francisco Harbor for March 2020 (Source www.marinetraffic.com)