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Date: 4/22/2021

Session Time: 2:00 PM to 3:15 PM Pacific

Analyses and Implications of the 4 August 2020 Beirut Explosion Series

On 4 August 2020 at 15:07 UTC, a fire at the port of Beirut in Lebanon (33.54o, 33.51o) detonated a purported ~2.8kT mixture of ammonium nitrate and fuel that resulted in a sequence of explosion phenomena. These video-captured events triggered a shock wave and visible Wilson cloud, destroyed buildings and shattered glass several kilometers from the explosion(s) hypocenter. Mechanical waveform sensors that include seismic, infrasonic and hydroacoustic receivers recorded waveforms from the event out to regional distances and provide data on explosion size and timing. Assessment of this event therefore has multiple implications beyond seismology that include the interface between science and society, forensics, emergency response and hazard mitigation. This session welcomes submissions on the analysis of this event that include, but are not limited to (1) hydroacoustic and seismo-acoustic detection and association of the blast waveforms; (2) study of energy coupling mechanisms at the ground-water-air interface; (3) analyses of aseismic geophysical signatures, such as cratering; (4) multi-signature data fusion of both traditional and non-traditional data sources; (5) methods to quantify uncertainties of parameter estimates of the source or propagation path (exploitation of ground truth) and (6) broader implications of rapid response and societal consequences. We encourage both poster and talk submissions.

Conveners
Joshua D. Carmichael, Los Alamos National Laboratory (joshuac@lanl.gov)
Fransiska K. Dannemann Dugick, Sandia National Laboratories (fdannemanndugick@gmail.com)
Seung-Hoon Yoo, Applied Research Associates (syoo@ara.com)
Stephen J. Arrowsmith, Southern Methodist University (sarrowsmith@mail.smu.edu)

Oral Presentations