Very low frequency phase perturbations and the Soviet high-altitude nuclear bursts of October 22 and 28, 1962: 2. Comparison with satellite particle data

Abstract

Energy and spatial characteristics of artificial radiation belts were deduced in part 1, where we examined the temporal histories of the VLF phase perturbations produced by the two Soviet high-altitude nuclear bursts of October 1962. For both bursts the trapped electrons have energies ≲4 Mev, the electron spectrum ≲0.78 Mev resembling that from the radioactive decay of neutrons. This dichotomy of fission and neutron-decay β particles in the electron spectrum has not been achieved in the satellite particle data so far analyzed, where the energy ranges are either too broad or above 0.78 Mev. For the burst of October 22, the VLF characteristic that electrons ≲4 Mev are trapped in the region encompassing at least 1.75 ≲ L ≲ 3.76 is compatible with the trapped particle flux observed by Explorer 14, Alouette, and Telstar 1. For the burst of October 28, the VLF shows that fission β particles ≳0.78 Mev are not present in L > 2.32 and are confined on shells 1.6 Mev or the Explorer 15 results for electrons >1.9 Mev. The Alouette results also show that the energy spectrum extends to about 10 Mev, but that there is a rapid decrease in flux for E > 4 Mev. For the burst of October 28, the VLF shows that neutron-decay β particles have an outer trapping boundary at 2.32 ≤ L 230 kev but not with the Telstar data for E > 390 kev, where the outer boundary extends to L ∼ 4. The VLF result that protons 2.3 500 kev at L = 2.8 and 3.2. The characteristics of protons from nuclear explosions are reviewed, and the electron results are consolidated to form at least a model for additional investigations of the artificial radiation belts formed by the Soviet bursts of October 22 and 28, 1962.