Evaluation of Chemical Explosions and Methods of Discrimination for Practical Seismic Monitoring of a CTBT

Abstract : Our Final Report is in three parts. Part one is a stand-alone paper, submitted for publication, entitled "The Seismic Signal Strength of Chemical Explosions." In this paper, we have compared the seismic magnitude of a wide variety of chemical explosions to the magnitude expected for explosions set off in hard rock under conditions most favorable for generating strong seismic signals. We define the deficit of an explosion, as this largest magnitude, minus the actual magnitude. In practice, the deficit is found to he around 1.5 to 2 magnitude units, for the great majority of explosions. Part two is a stand-alone paper, entitled "Magnitude Distribution of Mine Blasting Activity In Different Regions. In this paper we survey more than 30 regions of the world and conclude that not more than a few hundred mine blasts per year occur with magnitude greater than or equal 3.5. Part three is a brief report on work we have published concerning discrimination of explosions, using three-component seismic data.