Calculation of ionospheric effects due to acoustic radiation from an underground nuclear explosion

Within the framework of the ionospheric detection of underground nuclear tests, we have developed an analytic computing technique for the acoustic effect of a confined nuclear explosion on upper layers of the Earth's atmosphere. The relationship (32) is obtained, which relates the nuclear test parameters (depth, explosion yield, and mechanical properties of the rock) to the vertical displacement of the ionosphere produced by the shock wave over the explosion's epicentre. It is also shown that most of the acoustic energy produced by a confined underground nuclear explosion escapes upward, with only a small fraction being captured by the atmospheric waveguide.