The objective of this research is to advance understanding of the relationships among ecological processes, marine optics, and acoustic scattering layers (or ‘deep scattering layers’) that are consequences of energetic processes occurring at, and around, the Polar Front in the western Barents Sea. Research topics include (1) collection and analysis of bio-acoustics data at multiple frequencies, (2) identification of organisms constituting acoustic scattering layer from acoustics and in situ imagery, (3) identification of organisms’ preferred light levels and triggers of diel vertical migration, (4) development of methodologies (including numerical modeling and machine learning) to determine multivariate relationships among disparate data types, (5) development of non-acoustic techniques for prediction of ASL strength and location.