Acoustic Sensing Systems Selected for Undersea Surveillance Missions

ThayerMahan has been awarded a contract to support a large-scale deployment of dozens of Outpost® acoustic intelligence payloads and TransparenSea® processing software to an international defense customer for persistent undersea surveillance and warfare missions.

The selection follows a rigorous, multi-phase evaluation that included controlled validation, extended at-sea deployments, and head-to-head comparative trials against multiple payloads under representative mission conditions. The testing phase focused specifically on detection performance, tracking reliability, system endurance, power efficiency, and integration with unmanned platforms.

During multi-month operational deployments, Outpost® and TransparenSea® demonstrated continuous wide-area acoustic surveillance. The technology successfully detected, classified, and tracked targets of interest at operationally relevant ranges while delivering near-real-time, actionable acoustic intelligence to shore-based Maritime Operations Centers. The systems met or exceeded performance expectations for both surveillance and Undersea Warfare (USW) missions while operating within the constrained power and size profiles typical of small, unmanned platforms.

Several key factors supported the selection, including persistent coverage over extended deployment periods, reliable target hold and classification at range, low power consumption for long-duration operations, and minimal platform modification requirements. Additionally, the system provides near-real-time data delivery for rapid decision-making alongside an intuitive interface that reduces operator workload and training burdens for analysts.

Mike Varney, President Products & Engineering at ThayerMahan, commented, “Persistent, wide area acoustic sensing requires consistent performance over time, which is why we spent the last decade perfecting our capability. ThayerMahan sets the global benchmark for unmanned acoustic intelligence. Outpost and TransparenSea have been repeatedly validated under operational conditions, which was a key factor in this selection.”

The contract reflects increasing demand for scalable, unmanned acoustic sensing solutions that can rapidly be deployed to extend maritime domain awareness without reliance on traditional crewed assets.

Mike Connor, Chairman and CEO, added, “This award aligns with the need for operationally relevant, fielded capability that delivers consistent surveillance and USW performance. The focus is on systems that work as deployed – reliably, at scale, and with immediate mission impact.”

The awarded systems are exportable and production-ready, supporting rapid fielding timelines and broader adoption of distributed, unmanned sensing architectures for undersea domain awareness.