Infrasound and the Infrasonic Monitoring of Atmospheric Nuclear Explosions: A Literature Review

Abstract : This report reviews unclassified past work in infrasound and atmospheric acoustics deemed relevant to current interests in monitoring compliance with a CTBT(Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty). The report is one of four resulting from a DOE sponsored seventeen month investigation and review of past work in infrasound. The purpose of the report is to update previous reviews and to provide members of the research and development and governmental policy making communities, with an interest in or responsibility for monitoring compliance to CTBT, with a thorough and relatively self-contained document summarizing the primary essentials of current and past work in infrasonic research. Following a background section, the report reviews: (1) the measurement of infrasound; (2) early work in infrasound and atmospheric acoustics; (3) propagation and explosive source modeling; (4) various natural and man made sources of infrasound and (5) data and waveforms from a number of nuclear and chemical explosions. The report contains one Appendix which provides waveforms of atmospheric nuclear explosions recorded on Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Laboratory's microbarograph arrays as originally published by Donn and Ewing (1967).