A Seismo‐Acoustic Analysis of the 2017 North Korean Nuclear Test

Research Article| August 22, 2018 A Seismo‐Acoustic Analysis of the 2017 North Korean Nuclear Test Jelle Assink; Jelle Assink aR&D Seismology and Acoustics, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI), P.O. Box 201, 3730 AE De Bilt, The Netherlands, assink@knmi.nl Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Gil Averbuch; Gil Averbuch bFaculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Department of Geoscience and Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Stevinweg 1, 2628 CN Delft, The Netherlands Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Shahar Shani‐Kadmiel; Shahar Shani‐Kadmiel bFaculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Department of Geoscience and Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Stevinweg 1, 2628 CN Delft, The Netherlands Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Pieter Smets; Pieter Smets bFaculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Department of Geoscience and Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Stevinweg 1, 2628 CN Delft, The Netherlands Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Läslo Evers Läslo Evers aR&D Seismology and Acoustics, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI), P.O. Box 201, 3730 AE De Bilt, The Netherlands, assink@knmi.nlcAlso at Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Department of Geoscience and Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Stevinweg 1, 2628 CN Delft, The Netherlands. Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Jelle Assink aR&D Seismology and Acoustics, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI), P.O. Box 201, 3730 AE De Bilt, The Netherlands, assink@knmi.nl Gil Averbuch bFaculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Department of Geoscience and Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Stevinweg 1, 2628 CN Delft, The Netherlands Shahar Shani‐Kadmiel bFaculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Department of Geoscience and Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Stevinweg 1, 2628 CN Delft, The Netherlands Pieter Smets bFaculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Department of Geoscience and Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Stevinweg 1, 2628 CN Delft, The Netherlands Läslo Evers aR&D Seismology and Acoustics, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI), P.O. Box 201, 3730 AE De Bilt, The Netherlands, assink@knmi.nlcAlso at Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Department of Geoscience and Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Stevinweg 1, 2628 CN Delft, The Netherlands. Publisher: Seismological Society of America First Online: 22 Aug 2018 Online Issn: 1938-2057 Print Issn: 0895-0695 © Seismological Society of America Seismological Research Letters (2018) 89 (6): 2025–2033. https://doi.org/10.1785/0220180137 Article history First Online: 22 Aug 2018 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Jelle Assink, Gil Averbuch, Shahar Shani‐Kadmiel, Pieter Smets, Läslo Evers; A Seismo‐Acoustic Analysis of the 2017 North Korean Nuclear Test. Seismological Research Letters 2018;; 89 (6): 2025–2033. doi: https://doi.org/10.1785/0220180137 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietySeismological Research Letters Search Advanced Search ABSTRACT The 2017 North Korean nuclear test gave rise to seismic and low‐frequency acoustic signals, that is, infrasound. The infrasonic signals are due to seismo‐acoustic coupling and have been detected on microbarometer array I45RU in the Russian Federation at 401 km from the test site. I45RU is part of the International Monitoring System for the verification of the Comprehensive Nuclear‐Test‐Ban Treaty. We analyze the seismo‐acoustic coupling by making use of array‐processing and backprojection techniques. The backprojections show that infrasound radiation is not confined to the epicentral region. More distant regions are found to be consistent with locations of topography, sedimentary basins, and underwater evanescent sources. The backprojections can be used to estimate the average infrasonic propagation speed through the atmosphere. We discuss these findings in the context of infrasound propagation conditions during the sixth nuclear test. It is suggested that propagation from the test site to I45RU may have occurred along unexpected paths instead of typical stratospheric propagation. We present several scenarios that could be considered in the interpretation of the observations. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.