Predicting Bioluminescence Signatures Based on the NAVOCEANO Bioluminescence Database

Bioluminescence represents an operational threat to U.S. Navy nighttime operations because of the risk due to flow-stimulated light emission from naturally occurring plankton. Conversely, bioluminescence presents additional capabilities for detecting moving objects at night, particularly in the littoral zone where conventional acoustic surveillance is severely challenged. We are interested in the hydrodynamic conditions that stimulate bioluminescence, and the bioluminescence signature (footprint) that is created. To assess the risk due to flow-stimulated bioluminescence, the Naval Oceanographic Office (NAVOCEANO) measures bathyphotometer-stimulated bioluminescence potential throughout the worlds’ oceans. The present study helps provide a scientific context for using the database to predict bioluminescence signatures of Navy interest. We are interested in how a luminescent wake scales with speed and bioluminescence potential, and how changes in bioluminescent potential change the spatial footprint and intensity of the bioluminescence signature.