Nuclear Explosions Records from Lop Nor Test Site Recorded by Central Asia Stations

Session: Back to the Future: Innovative New Research with Legacy Seismic Data [Poster]
Type: Poster
Date: 4/28/2020
Time: 08:00 AM
Room: Ballroom
Description: 

The Lop Nor Nuclear Test Site is located in Xinjiang province, China, about 600 km south-eastward of Kazakhstan-Chinese border. In 1964-1996 there were 47 nuclear tests, including 3 surface, 19 atmosphere and 25 underground explosions. The Maximum yield of atmosphere explosions reached 4 Mt (November 17, 1976), for underground nuclear tests the maximum yield was 660 Kt (May 21, 1992). During the time period of nuclear tests at Lop Nor, on the territory of Central Asia there was a monitoring network consisting of sensitive seismic stations and microbarographs with analog and digital recording.

The data of historic seismograms of Central Asia seismic stations located on the territory of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan (epicentral distance 700-2000 km) allowed creation of a seismic bulletin. In total, about 1000 seismograms were processed. The seismic records allow the study of kinematic and dynamic parameters that, in turn, allowed us to estimate the origin time, mb magnitude, regional magnitudes mpv, MLV and energy class K of the nuclear explosions. The locations of epicenters were précised using satellite imagery.

The waveforms of atmosphere and surface explosions from Lop Nor region were analyzed using records of a microbarograph installed on the territory of the Talgar observatory (Northern Tien Shan). Interestingly, infrasound signals from large atmospheric explosions were recorded by both the microbarograph and long-period seismometer and sometimes by a strainmeter. The dynamic parameters of seismic and infrasound records of nuclear explosions, depending on the explosion yield and source type, were analyzed.

Presenting Author: Inna Sokolova

Authors