Open AccessThe Dependence of Seismic Signal Amplitudes on the Size of Underground Explosions
Author(s) -
Carpenter E. W.,
Savill R. A.,
Wright J. K.
Publication year - 1962
Publication title -
geophysical journal of the royal astronomical society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.302
H-Index - 168
eISSN - 1365-246X
pISSN - 0016-8009
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-246x.1962.tb02991.x
Subject(s) - amplitude , scaling law , scaling , seismology , ground motion , geology , physics , seismic wave , computational physics , optics , mathematics , geometry
Summary The essence of this paper is the application of W½ scaling laws to predict the amplitude dependence of distant seismic signals on the size of underground explosions. Various hypothetical models for the ground motion near to an underground explosion are discussed and the appropriate amplitude‐yield relationship derived. For most practical applications it appears that a linear relationship can be used, although for very large charges (or high frequencies) the amplitude will increase less rapidly than charge size and may even decrease. The effect of the bandwidth of the recording instrument is shown to be significant and a comparison is made between theoretical predictions and the results obtained from nuclear explosions.