Gold Medal

The Gold Medal is presented in the Spring to a member of the Society, without age limitation, for contributions to acoustics. The first Gold Medal was presented in 1954, on the occasion of the Society’s Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Celebration, and biennially until 1980. It is now an annual award.

1969 – Frederick V. Hunt – For his extensive contributions to the science and technology of acoustics in the fields of architecture, engineering, and signal processing; for his creative leadership in underwater sound and its application to the security of our nation; and for his service to the Society. (Abstracted)
1985 – Laurence Batchelder – For significant contributions to underwater acoustics, to acoustical standards, and to the Acoustical Society of America as Fellow, officer, and patent reviewer.
1990 – Eugen J. Skudrzyk (posthumously) – For his extensive contributions to the advancement of acoustics, particularly structural and underwater acoustics, as a researcher, author and educator.
1996 – Ira Dyer – For contributions to ocean acoustics, structural acoustics, and aeroacoustics, and for dedicated service to the Society.
1999 – Henning E. von Gierke – For contributions to bioacoustics, psychoacoustics, vibrations, and for leadership in national and international acoustical standards.
2000 – Murray Strasberg – For contributions to hydroacoustics, acoustic cavitation and turbulence noise, and for dedicated service to the Society.
2001 – Herman Medwin – For innovative research in ocean acoustics and leadership and service to the Society.
2004 – Chester M. McKinney – For pioneering research and leadership in underwater acoustic and high resolution sonar, and for dedicated service to the Society.
2012 – William A. Kuperman – For leadership in underwater acoustics, mentoring generations of acousticians, and for service to the society.
2020 – James F. Lynch

Honorary Fellow

A person who has attained eminence in acoustics or who has rendered outstanding service to acoustics may be elected to Honorary Fellowship. At the time of election an Honorary Fellow need not be a member of the Society.

1960 – Harvey C. Hayes
1988 – Henrik A.S. Nodtvedt
1999 – Leonid M. Brekhovskikh
2002 – Michael Longuet–Higgins
2004 – Walter H. Munk

R. Bruce Lindsay Award

The R. Bruce Lindsay Award, formerly called the Biennial Award, is presented in the Spring to a member of the Society who is under 35 years of age on 1 January of the year of the Award and who, during a period of two or more years immediately preceding the award, has been active in the affairs of the Society and has contributed substantially, through published papers, to the advancement of theoretical or applied acoustics, or both. The award was presented biennially until 1986. It is now an annual award and consists of $3000, a complete set of the The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America.

1960 – Ira Dyer
1982 – Ralph N. Baer – For important contributions toward a better understanding of the propagation of sound in the ocean and, in particular, the effects of Rossby waves and eddies.
1984 – Peter N. Mikhalevsky – For significant contributions to understanding the propagation of sound in the ocean and the role of fluctuations in signal detection modeling.
1993 – Michael D. Collins – For exceptional contributions to numerical modeling of complex acoustical phenomena and nonlinear inversion methods.
2006 – Purnima Ratilal – For contributions to the theory of wave propagation and scattering through a waveguide, and to the acoustic remote sensing of marine life.
2016 – Megan S. Ballard – For contributions to underwater acoustic propagation modeling and inversion techniques in acoustical oceanography.
2020 – Julien Bonnel – For development of physics-based signal processing methods for geoacoustic inversion and passive acoustic monitoring

Pioneers of Underwater Acoustics Medal

The Pioneers of Underwater Acoustics Medal is presented to an individual, irrespective of nationality, age, or society affiliation, who has made an outstanding contribution to the science of underwater acoustics, as evidenced by publication of research results in professional journals or by other accomplishments in the field. The award was named in honor of five pioneers in the field: H. J. W. Fay, R. A. Fessenden, H. C. Hayes, G. W. Pierce, and P. Langevin.

1959 – Harvey C. Hayes – For outstanding contributions to the science of underwater acoustics. His far sighted recognition of the challenging technical problems in this branch of acoustics and the potentiality of the application of their solution to the defense needs of the Nation resulted in the first sustained research program in underwater sound.
1961 – Albert B. Wood – For pioneering leadership in underwater sound; the development of the cathode-ray oscillograph and its adaptation to the study of underwater explosions; his invention of the magneto-strictive depth recorder; and his studies of shallow-water sound transmission.
1963 – J. Warren Horton – For his pioneering contributions to the knowledge and practice of underwater acoustics as scientist, and teacher, and administrator; and particularly for his painstaking and thorough organization of the science of underwater acoustics and its presentation in the book “Fundamentals of Sonar.”
1965 – Frederick V. Hunt – For his pioneering contributions to underwater acoustics as a scientist, innovator, teacher, and administrator; and particularly for his unceasing efforts directed toward greater scientific understanding and more effective exploitation of sound in the sea.
1970 – Harold L. Saxton – For his contributions to both knowledge and practice of underwater acoustics, and particularly for innovative solutions to problems of signal processing and sonar systems and transducers.
1973 – Carl Eckart – For his consummate skill, insight, and clarity in bringing to others the theoretical foundations for understanding the principles of underwater sound and acoustic signal processing, and for his leadership, wise counsel, and kindness in helping others to pursue the unsolved problems of the sea.
1980 – Claude W. Horton, Sr. – For his contributions in underwater acoustics in the field of propagation, reflection, and scattering, signal processing, particularly methods in acoustic data treatment and interpretation, and especially for his contribution as a teacher and friend of scientists.
1982 – Arthur O. Williams, Jr. – For his contribution to the theory of normal mode propagation of sound in the ocean, to the theory of sound radiation from piston sources, and to the education of graduates and undergraduates.
1985 – Fred N. Spiess – For his leadership and insight in applying acoustics to study the ocean and the sea floor, for his many ingenious scientific and engineering contributions; for his introduction of students, scientists, and many others to underwater acoustics.
1988 – Robert J. Urick – For his book “Principles of Underwater Sound” and his many experiments on sound propagation, scattering, reverberation, and ambient noise.
1990 – Ivan Tolstoy – For innovative studies in oceanic, atmospheric and seismic wave propagation.
1993 – Homer P. Bucker – For ground-breaking work integrating signal processing and acoustic modeling.
1995 – William A. Kuperman – For the development and application of models for ocean acoustic propagation and scattering.
2000 – Darrell R. Jackson – For work on acoustic time reversal techniques and scattering from the ocean sea floor and sea surface.
2002 – Frederick D. Tappert – For application of the parabolic equation to underwater acoustic propagation.
2005 – Henrik Schmidt – For pioneering contributions in numerical modeling and at-sea experiments in underwater acoustics.
2007 – William M. Carey – For contributions to understanding ocean ambient noise and in defining the limits of acoustic array performance in the ocean.
2010 – George V. Frisk – For contributions to quantifying acoustic interactions with the seabed.
2014 – Michael B. Porter – For contributions to underwater acoustic modeling.
2017 – Michael J. Buckingham – For contributions to the understanding of ocean ambient noise and marine sediment.
 

Interdisciplinary Silver Medal – Helmholtz-Rayleigh Interdisciplinary Silver Medal

Two or more Technical Committees may nominate candidates whose work overlaps more than one technical area. In 1995 this award was designated the Helmholtz-Rayleigh Interdisciplinary Silver Medal.

1992 – Victor C. Anderson – Silver Medal in Underwater Acoustics and Engineering Acoustics – For pioneering underwater sound research in ambient noise and for the invention and engineering development of the delay time compression (DELTIC) correlator and digital multibeam steering (DIMUS) sonar.
1998 – David E. Weston – Helmholtz-Rayleigh Interdisciplinary Silver Medal in Acoustical Oceanography and Underwater Acoustics – For seminal work on the physics of explosive sources, scattering, and the horizontal refraction of sound.
2002 – Arthur B. Baggeroer – Helmholtz-Rayleigh Interdisciplinary Silver Medal in Underwater Acoustics, Acoustical Oceanography and Signal Processing in Acoustics – For applications of model-based signal processing to underwater acoustics and for contributions to Arctic acoustics.
2008 – James V. Candy – Helmholtz-Rayleigh Interdisciplinary Silver Medal in Signal Processing and Underwater Acoustics – For contributions to signal processing and underwater acoustics.
2011 – James E. Barger – Helmholtz-Rayleigh Interdisciplinary Silver Medal in Underwater Acoustics and Engineering Acoustics – For the development of technologies in source and receiver design and signal processing.
2015 – Henry Cox – Helmholtz-Rayleigh Interdisciplinary Silver Medal in Signal Processing in Acoustics, Underwater Acoustics, and Engineering Acoustics – For fundamental and practical contributions to array signal processing, underwater acoustics, and sonar systems engineering.

A. B. Wood Medal and Prize of the Institute of Acoustics

The A. B. Wood Medal and Prize is presented to an individual, preferably under thirty-five years of age in the year of the Award for distinguished contributions in the application of acoustics, preference being given to candidates whose work is associated with the sea. The award is made in alternate years to persons residing in (1) the United Kingdom and (2) the United States of America or Canada. The award is made by the Institute of Acoustics (United Kingdom). By agreement with the Institute of Acoustics, the Acoustical Society nominates candidates for the award in alternate years.

1970 – B. S. McCartney
1971 – Robert E. Apfel
1972 – B. Ray
1973 – M. C. Hendershott
1976 – P. A. Crowther
1977 – Peter R. Stephanishen
1978 – A. D. Hawkins
1979 – Peter H. Rogers
1980 – I. Roebuck
1981 – Robert C. Spindel
1982 – Michael J. Buckingham
1983 – Peter N. Mikhalevsky
1984 – Martin J. Earwicker
1985 – Timothy K. Stanton
1986 – Peter D. Thorne
1987 – David M. F. Chapman
1988 – V. F. Humphrey
1989 – M. G. Brown
1990 – Ann P. Dowling
1991 – Michael B. Porter
1992 – Christopher H. Harrison
1993 – Michael D. Collins
1994 – Timothy J. Leighton
1995 – Nicholas C. Makris
1997 – Grant B. Deane
1998 – M. A. Ainslie
1999 – M.V. Trevorrow
2000 – Gary Heald
2001 – John A. Colosi
2002 – Simon Richards
2003 – Anthony Lyons
2004 – Eric Pouliquen
2005 – Aaron B. Thode
2006 – Not Awarded
2007 – Preston S. Wilson
2008 – Judith Bell
2009 – Karim Sabra
2010 – Mario Zampolli
2011 – Kyle Becker
2012 – John Smith
2013 – Brian Todd Hefner
2014 – Alexander (Sander) von Benda-Beckmann
2015 – Ying-Tsong Lin
2016 – Yan Pailhas
2017 – Jan Dettmer
2018 – Nathan Merchant
2019 – Julien Bonnel