Wuestefeld, Andreas; Spica, Zack J.; Aderhold, Kasey; Huang, Hsin H.; Ma, Kuo F.; Lai, Voon H.; Miller, Meghan; Urmantseva, Lena; Zapf, Daniel; Bowden, Daniel C.; Edme, Pascal; Kiers, Tjeerd; Rinaldi, Antonio P.; Tuinstra, Katinka; Jestin, Camille; Diaz-Meza, Sergio; Jousset, Philippe; Wollin, Christopher; Ugalde, Arantza; Barajas, Sandra R.; Gaite, Beatriz; Currenti, Gilda; Prestifilippo, Michele; Araki, Eiichiro; Tonegawa, Takashi; De Ridder, Sjoerd; Nowacki, Andy; Lindner, Fabian; Schoenball, Martin; Wetter, Christoph; Zhu, Hong H.; Baird, Alan F.; Rorstadbotnen, Robin A.; Ajo-Franklin, Jonathan; Ma, Yuanyuan; Abbott, Robert A.; Hodgkinson, Kathleen; Porritt, Robert W.; Stanciu, Adrian; Podrasky, Agatha; Hill, David; Biondi, Biondo; Yuan, Siyuan; Bin LuoBin; Nikitin, Sergei; Morten, Jan P.; Dumitru, Vlad A.; Lienhart, Werner; Cunningham, Erin; Wang, Herbert
During February 2023, a total of 32 individual DAS systems acted jointly as a global seismic monitoring network. The aim of this Global DAS Month campaign was to coordinate a diverse network of organizations, instruments, and file formats in order to gain knowledge and move toward the next generation of earthquake monitoring networks. During this campaign, 156 earthquakes of magnitude 5 or larger were reported by the USGS and contributors shared data for 60 min after each event’s origin time. Participating systems represent a variety of manufacturers, a range of recording parameters, and varying cable emplacement settings (e.g., shallow burial, borehole, subaqueous, dark fiber). Monitored cable lengths vary between 152 and 120129 m, with channel spacing between 1 and 49 m. The data has a total size of 6.8 TB, and is available for free download. Organizing and executing the Global DAS Month has produced a unique dataset for further exploration and highlighted areas of further development for the seismological community to address.
In this report, we assess the data recorded by a Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) cable deployed during the Source Physics Experiment, Phase II (DAG) in comparison with the data recorded by nearby 4.5-Hz geophones. DAS is a novel recording method with unprecedented spatial resolution, but there are significant concerns around the data fidelity as the technology is ramped up to more common usage. Here we run a series of tests to quantify the similarity between DAS data and more conventional data and investigate cases where the higher spatial resolution of the DAS can provide new insights into the wavefield. These tests include 1D modeling with seismic refraction and bootstrap uncertainties, assessing the amplitude spectra with distance from the source, measuring the frequency dependent inter-station coherency, estimating time-dependent phase velocity with beamforming and semblance, and measuring the cross-correlation between the geophone and the particle velocity inferred from the DAS. In most cases, we find high similarity between the two datasets, but the higher spatial resolution of the DAS provides increased details and methods of estimating uncertainty.
Mellors, Robert J.; Abbott, Robert A.; Steedman, David; Podrasky, David; Pitarka, Arben
Fiber optic distributed acoustic sensors (DAS) are becoming a widely used tool for seismic sensing. Here we examine recordings of two subsurface chemical explosions, DAG-1 and DAG-3, each of which was about one metric ton (TNT equivalent), that were recorded from a helical fiber installed in two boreholes 80 m away from the source location. Several clear phases including the initial P wave, a weak S wave, and a surface reflected P wave are observed on the helical DAS data. We estimate a velocity model using arrival times measured from the fiber. The DAS waveform data were compared with colocated accelerometers at specific depths in both frequency and time domains. The spectra of the DAS data matched spectra estimated from the accelerometer records. Comparisons of observed waveform shape between the accelerometer records and the fiber measurements (strain-rate) show reasonable agreement except for the data near the event depth. The DAS data and the accelerometer agreed in relative amplitudes but we had difficulties in matching absolute amplitudes, possibly due to errors in metadata. Synthetic strain-rate waveforms were calculated using a 2D wavenumber algorithm and matched the waveform shape and relative amplitudes. In general, DAS is effective at recording strong ground motions at high spatial density. Comparison of the synthetic seismograms with observed data indicate that the waveforms are not consistent with a pure isotropic explosion source and that the observed S waves originate from very near the source region.
In this report, we assess the data recorded by a Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) cable deployed during the Source Physics Experiment, Phase II (DAG) in comparison with the data recorded by nearby 4.5-Hz geophones. DAS is a novel recording method with unprecedented spatial resolution, but there are significant concerns around the data fidelity as the technology is ramped up to more common usage. Here we run a series of tests to quantify the similarity between DAS data and more conventional data and investigate cases where the higher spatial resolution of the DAS can provide new insights into the wavefield. These tests include 1D modeling with seismic refraction and bootstrap uncertainties, assessing the amplitude spectra with distance from the source, measuring the frequency dependent inter-station coherency, estimating time-dependent phase velocity with beamforming and semblance, and measuring the cross-correlation between the geophone and the particle velocity inferred from the DAS. In most cases, we find high similarity between the two datasets, but the higher spatial resolution of the DAS provides increased details and methods of estimating uncertainty.
The complex postdetonation geologic structures that form after an underground nuclear explosion are hard to constrain because increased heterogeneity around the damage zone affects seismic waves that propagate through the explosion site. Generally, a vertical rub-ble-filled structure known as a chimney is formed after an underground nuclear explosion that is composed of debris that falls into the subsurface cavity generated by the explosion. Compared with chimneys that collapse fully, leaving a surface crater, partially collapsed chimneys can have remnant subsurface cavities left in place above collapsed rubble. The 1964 nuclear test HADDOCK, conducted at the Nevada test site (now the Nevada National Security Site), formed a partially collapsed chimney with no surface crater. Understanding the subsurface structure of these features has significant national security applications, such as aiding the study of suspected underground nuclear explosions under a treaty verification. In this study, we investigated the subsurface architecture of the HADDOCK legacy nuclear test using hybrid 2D–3D active source seismic reflection and refraction data. The seismic data were acquired using 275 survey shots from the Seismic Hammer (a 13,000 kg weight drop) and 65 survey shots from a smaller accelerated weight drop, both recorded by ∼ 1000 three-component 5 Hz geophones. First-arrival, P-wave tomographic modeling shows a low-velocity anomaly at ∼ 200 m depth, likely an air-filled cavity caused by partial collapse of the rock column into the temporary post-detonation cavity. A high-velocity anomaly between 20 and 60 m depth represents spall-related compaction of the shallow alluvium. Hints of low velocities are also present near the burial depth ( ∼ 364 m). The reflection seismic data show a prominent subhorizontal reflector at ∼ 300 m depth, a short-curved reflector at ∼ 200 m, and a high-amplitude reflector at ∼ 50 m depth. Comparisons of the reflection sections to synthetic data and borehole stratigraphy suggest that these features correspond to the alluvium–tuff contact, the partial collapse cavity, and the spalled layer, respectively.