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Seismometers are generally used by the research community to study local or distant earthquakes, but seismograms also contain critical observations from regional 1,2 and global explosions 3 , which can be used to better understand conflicts and identify potential breaches of international law. Although seismic, infrasound and hydroacoustic technology is used by the International Monitoring System 4 to monitor nuclear explosions as part of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, the detection and location of lower-yield military attacks requires a network of sensors much closer to the source of the explosions. Obtaining comprehensive and objective data that can be used to effectively monitor an active conflict zone therefore remains a substantial challenge. Here we show how seismic waves generated by explosions in northern Ukraine and recorded by a local network of seismometers can be used to automatically identify individual attacks in close to real time, providing an unprecedented view of an active conflict zone. Between February and November 2022, we observed more than 1,200 explosions from the Kyiv, Zhytomyr and Chernihiv provinces, providing accurate origin times, locations and magnitudes. We identify a range of seismoacoustic signals associated with various types of military attack, with the resulting catalogue of explosions far exceeding the number of publicly reported attacks. Our results demonstrate that seismic data can be an effective tool for objective monitoring of a continuing conflict, providing invaluable information about potential breaches of international law., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

The 15 January 2022 climactic eruption of Hunga volcano, Tonga, produced an explosion in the atmosphere of a size that has not been documented in the modern geophysical record. The event generated a broad range of atmospheric waves observed globally by various ground-based and spaceborne instrumentation networks. Most prominent was the surface-guided Lamb wave (≲0.01 hertz), which we observed propagating for four (plus three antipodal) passages around Earth over 6 days. As measured by the Lamb wave amplitudes, the climactic Hunga explosion was comparable in size to that of the 1883 Krakatau eruption. The Hunga eruption produced remarkable globally detected infrasound (0.01 to 20 hertz), long-range (~10,000 kilometers) audible sound, and ionospheric perturbations. Seismometers worldwide recorded pure seismic and air-to-ground coupled waves. Air-to-sea coupling likely contributed to fast-arriving tsunamis. Here, we highlight exceptional observations of the atmospheric waves.

Extreme temperature and pressure conditions on the surface of Venus present formidable technological challenges against performing ground-based seismology. Efficient coupling between the Venusian atmosphere and the solid planet theoretically allows the study of seismically generated acoustic waves using balloons in the upper atmosphere, where conditions are far more clement. However, earthquake detection from a balloon has never been demonstrated. We present the first detection of an earthquake from a balloon-borne microbarometer near Ridgecrest, CA in July 2019 and include a detailed analysis of the dependence of seismic infrasound, as measured from a balloon on earthquake source parameters, topography, and crustal and atmospheric structure. Our comprehensive analysis of seismo-acoustic phenomenology demonstrates that seismic activity is detectable from a high-altitude platform on Earth, and that Rayleigh wave-induced infrasound can be used to constrain subsurface velocities, paving the way for the detection and characterization of such signals on Venus., (© 2021. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. California Institute of Technology. Government sponsorship acknowledged.)

In this letter, a procedure for the calculation of transmission loss maps from numerical simulations in the time domain is presented. It can be generalized to arbitrary time sequences and to elastic media and provides an insight into how energy spreads into a complex configuration. In addition, time dispersion maps can be generated. These maps provide additional information on how energy is distributed over time. Transmission loss and time dispersion maps are generated at a negligible additional computational cost. To illustrate the type of transmission loss maps that can be produced by the time-domain method, the problem of the classical two-dimensional upslope wedge with a fluid bottom is addressed. The results obtained are compared to those obtained previously based on a parabolic equation. Then, for the same configuration, maps for an elastic bottom and maps for non-monochromatic signals are computed.