Sound Propagation in Air (to understand gunshot noise pollution)

by John M. Culver Sound -pressure difference wave fronts travel outwards as spherical waves so intensity is found using:

I1/ I2 = r22/ r21

I2 = I1(r21/ r22) but be characterized r2 can as being a multiple of r1 so that r2 = r1. Then:
Then

I2

becomes

I2 = I1(1/ 2)

= 10dBLog (I2/

Then the drop in decibels with distance is can then be characterized for convenience as:

I1).

This

= 10dBLog (1/ 2)

= the number of multiples of the distance

where, again,

r1 .

For Sound in air a convenient unit for distance is

r1

= 1 foot. So

5280(r1) = 1 mile. If we want to have the multiple in terms of miles then m5280 =

Thus

becomes:

(Formula 4)

= 10dBLog ((3.587x10-8)/m2)

m = the number of miles Now for a 140 dB noise as measured at 1 foot from the source the attenuation in air over clear ground (no obstructions such as trees or buildings or forest) would be: at 1 mile a loss of -74.5 dB occurs so that the sound attenuates to 65.5 dB. The following is a table based on the above formula (formula 4): Attenuation Table in Open Air and Open Ground Miles dB attenuation Miles dB attenuation 1 -74.5 11 -95.3 2 -80.5 12 -96 3 -84 13 -96.7 4 -86.5 14 -97.4 5 -88.43 15 -97.97 6 -90 16 -98.5 7 -91.35 17 -99.06 8 -92.5 18 -99.6 9 -93.5 19 -100 10 -94.5 20 -100.5 As a rough estimate it can always be remembered that there is a loss of 6 dB per every doubling of the distance from the source. Hence from 20 miles in the table above, the loss at 40 miles is 100.5 db + 6 dB or 106.5 dB. Attenuation in a thick Forest is roughly a loss of 7 to 10 dB per 100 meters or every 328 feet. So a mile of thick forest would give a loss of roughly 16(7) = 117 dB. A mile of thick forest combined with the normal spherical wave front attenuation over a mile would be 117db + 74.5 = 191.5 dB. But this would only be true if the receiver, your ear, etc. was at the same level as the source. A source high on a hill that comes form say, a hunting rifle, would quickly pass through the thin woods on the hill side and make its way down

to your ear with the trees proving little attenuation. So there are odd situations such as that which will affect the loss rate. Further the attenuation in woodlands and forest will vary greatly depending upon the thickness of the trees and brush and how close together they are and even the diameters of the trees. So a safe working estimate is 5 dB per every 300 feet of thick trees (trees through which you can only see less than 40 feet) which for one mile will give a loss of 88 dB.