Ray chaos and ray clustering in an ocean waveguide

Abstract

We consider ray propagation in a waveguide with a designed sound-speed profile perturbed by a range-dependent perturbation caused by internal waves in deep ocean environments. The Hamiltonian formalism in terms of the action and angle variables is applied to study nonlinear ray dynamics with two sound-channel models and three perturbation models: a single-mode perturbation, a random-like sound-speed fluctuations, and a mixed perturbation. In the integrable limit without any perturbation, we derive analytical expressions for ray arrival times and timefronts at a given range, the main measurable characteristics in field experiments in the ocean. In the presence of a single-mode perturbation, ray chaos is shown to arise as a result of overlapping nonlinear ray-medium resonances. Poincaré maps, plots of variations of the action per a ray cycle length, and plots with rays escaping the channel reveal inhomogeneous structure of the underlying phase space with remarkable zones of stability where stable coherent ray clusters may be formed. We demonstrate the possibility of determining the wavelength of the perturbation mode from the arrival time distribution under conditions of ray chaos. It is surprising that coherent ray clusters, consisting of fans of rays which propagate over long ranges with close dynamical characteristics, can survive under a random-like multiplicative perturbation modelling sound-speed fluctuations caused by a wide spectrum of internal waves.