Controls on the acoustic expression of buried and surface chemical explosions

Abstract

Surface and buried chemical explosions in the 1-50 ton TNT equivalent range can generate acoustic waves capable of traveling thousands of kilometers. Planned explosive campaigns in this size range have been used to develop acoustics-based yield determination techniques, investigate how acoustic propagation paths vary over short time scales, and examine how ground motion induces sound above the epicenter, among others. Here, we describe several test campaigns involving buried and surface chemical explosions. We discuss the combinations of explosive yield and burial depth that produce laterally propagating infrasound waves, as well as instances where diffuse sound from violent topographic shaking is observed. We also give an overview of a test series specifically aimed at investigating acoustic signal variation at tens to hundreds of kilometers range using co-located surface explosions fired tens of seconds apart. This will provide context for acoustic data interpretation from existing test series and aid in the design of future ones. [SNL is managed and operated by NTESS under DOE NNSA Contract No. DE-NA0003525.]