Acoustic detection of thermohaline staircases in the ocean and laboratory

Low frequency seismic reflection profiling has recently been used to reveal the interior thermohaline fine structure of the ocean, including intrusions, water mass boundaries and internal waves (Holbrook, 2003; 2004; 2005). Limited in-situ property profiles have confirmed that intensified fine-scale gradients of temperature and salinity are the source of the reflectors. Here we suggest that double-diffusive thermohaline staircases can also be imaged using low frequency ocean data and high frequency laboratory data