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Using Seismoacoustic Modeling to Infer Source Parameters of the 2020 Beirut Explosion

Description: 

The 2020 accidental explosion of the Port of Beirut provides a study case for regional propagation of the seismoacoustic wavefield, which is particularly relevant in a monitoring context. Additionally, the presence of the Mt. Meron infrasound array and the MMA0B seismic station, collocated about 100 km
south from the event gives a full seismoacoustic observation of the event at regional scale.

It is well-known that there is a strong coupling between seismic and acoustic wavefields for near surface events, and both signals associated with the Beirut explosion are recorded above the background noise. The infrasound signal shows a high SNR tropospheric arrival, despite the station being in the conventional shadow zone for infrasound, due to penetrating diffracted/creeping waves, and the vertical and radial seismic components presents a well-developed crustal Rayleigh wave (Rg).

We infer the source characteristics by means of a waveform-based inversion procedure, which rely on the computation of full seismoacoustic Green’s functions up to 1 Hz, using a 3-D spectral element method solver. It allows to take into account effects of a fine topography (90 m), 3-D elastic properties in the ground and to study the effects of variations in wind and sound speed in the atmosphere from various weather models.

We discuss the simulation results according to seismoacoustic coupling phenomenology, interaction of weather models and topography, and the inverted source properties through explosion yield estimation.

Session: Detecting, Locating, Characterizing and Monitoring Non-earthquake Seismoacoustic Sources

Type: Oral

Date: 4/19/2023

Presentation Time: 11:15 AM (local time)

Presenting Author: Gael Burgos

Student Presenter: No

Invited Presentation: 

Authors