Studies of sonic booms with seismic networks

Abstract

Seismographs are sufficiently sensitive to detect ground motions induced by atmospheric pressure waves, so seismic networks have the potential to monitor sonic booms over large areas of the United States. They are especially well suited for the analysis of long‐range sonic‐boom propagation. Ground motion or displacement data provide accurate arrival times and useful estimates of wave amplitude and waveform. The instrumentation is most sensitive to the disturbance produced by the arrival of sonic booms at the measuring station, thus serving as sonic‐boom event recorders, but seismographs have also detected seismic waves remotely generated by anomalous coupling of sonic boom into soil. Direct and indirect sonic booms from aircraft operations are routinely detected by the Southern California Seismic Network which consists of 250 seismic stations covering 50 000 sq km. Indirect booms from space shuttle landings has been observed at ranges of hundreds of kilometers from the flight path. Data from the network identified ‘‘mystery booms’’ heard in 1992–93 to be long‐range indirect sonic booms from offshore operations. Sonic booms generated by space shuttle reentry at Mach 20 and by meteoritic entries into the atmosphere have been detected by seismic networks in the Northwest and Canada.