The focusing effect of P-wave in the Moon's and Earth's low-velocity core. Analytical solution

Abstract

The important aspect in the study of the structure of the interiors of planets is the question of the presence and state of core inside them. While for the Earth this task was solved long ago, the question of whether the core of the Moon is in a liquid or solid state up to the present is debatable up to present. If the core of the Moon is liquid, then the velocity of longitudinal waves in it should be lower than in the surrounding mantle. If the core is solid, then most likely, the velocity of longitudinal waves in it is higher than in the mantle. Numerical calculations of the wave field allow us to identify the criteria for drawing conclusions about the state of the lunar core.In this paper we consider the problem of constructing an analytical solution for wave fields in a layered sphere of arbitrary radius. A stable analytic solution is obtained for the wave fields of longitudinal waves in a three-layer sphere. Calculations of the total wave fields and rays for simplified models of the Earth and the Moon with real parameters are presented. The analytical solution and the ray pattern showed that the low-velocity cores of the Earth and the Moon possess the properties of a collecting lens. This leads to the emergence of a wave field focusing area. As a result, focused waves of considerable amplitude appear on the surface of the Earth and the Moon. In the Earth case, they appear before the first PKP-wave arrival. These are so-called “precursors”, which continue in the subsequent arrivals of waves. At the same time, for the simplified model of the Earth, the maximum amplitude growth is observed in the 147-degree region. For the Moon model, the maximum amplitude growth is around 180°.