We all use equipment differently. It’s important to purchase the right equipment that is well suited with the intended use.
For example, somebody looking to carry out a live performance will look for a good dynamic microphone that is meant for things like stage use.
Therefore, its important to know what kind of gear you need in order to achieve a specific end result.
“is there a waterproof microphone?” Is a question I recently came across and this post will discuss this and answer the question as precise as possible in order to give you some context on the topic as well as some answers.
With that said, is there a waterproof microphone?
Waterproof microphones exist and they are called hydrophones. They are usually meant for underwater recording conditions and they allow the user to record sounds under water.
Hydrophone
A hydrophone is a microphone that is specifically designed to be used underwater for recording or listening to sounds under water.
The majority of hydrophones are based on a piezoelectric transducer that generates an electric potential when it is subjected to a pressure change, such as a sound wave.
Some piezoelectric transducers can also have the ability to serve as a sound projector, but not all of them have this capability, and some may be destroyed if they’re to be used in such a manner.
A hydrophone is able to detect and capture airborne sounds…but using it to do so wont work the best.
because it is designed differently compared to the everyday microphone.
Essentially hydrophones are designed to match the acoustic impedance of water, which is a denser fluid than air.
Sound travels 4.3 times faster in water than in air, and a sound wave in water exerts a pressure 60 times than that exerted by a wave of the same amplitude in air.
If you were to bury a standard “normal” microphone in the ground or immerse it in water by use of a container to keep it dry. The microphone would be poor at capturing sound in that sense because of the bad acoustic impedance match.
Use of Hydrophones
Let’s look at some uses of hydrophones
Fisheries
Fisheries or fishing companies often times rely on the use of hydrophones to get a good sense of sea and ocean activities.
This is important for them and a huge part of their overall business.
Having knowledge and data of what’s going on beneath the surface works as a good fishing are indicator.
Environmental monitoring
The enviroment we inhabit is important. We can never limit it to what is only visible to eye, it spreads out across the earth.
Scientists have to explore both the surface and the world beneath the ground when carrying out various experiments for ranging research.
Hydrophones serve as important gadgets in understanding the underwater environment.
Therefore, they’re widely used for research and experimentation.
Deep sea diving combined with use of hydrophones can be a great pair and a way to get a visual and sound in on underwater activity.
Navigation and positioning
Since hydrophones are helpful in picking up sound in water, they are often times used as tools for navigation.
They are sometimes attached to robots that are able to roam under water.
The data they produce can then be used for purposes of positioning.
Having the sound signatures of underwater activity allows us to navigate to areas in seas and oceans that we want to go to without always having to dive deep into dangerous areas.
Using hydrophones can be a lot safer and can be an effective way to explore dangerous parts of the ocean or sea that people haven’t explored yet.
Deeper Exploration
When it comes to scientific research, it’s not all about understanding underwater activity. it is also about understanding the structure of the earth.
Over the years the earth has undergone various changes, we’ve heard of earth quakes sweeping away a lot and causing catastrophic damage to a number of things.
It is for this reason that scientific research has evolved over time and new studies have been developed as ways to understand calamities like earth quakes.
Inventions like hydrophones have made it easier for scientists to go beneath the surface and capture sounds not only made by undersea creatures but also to capture sounds made by mother earth herself.
Therefore, they are very essential pieces of gear that have wide applications.
I’ve only mentioned a few here to basically give you an introduction into the topic of waterproof microphones.
However there’s still a lot more you can find about hydrophones.
