Seismic Waves Generated by Sonic Booms: A Geoacoustical Problem

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Abstract
Low- and very-low-frequency air-coupled seismic waves were efficiently excited on different occasions by jet fighter planes flying at high altitudes and at Mach numbers greater than 1.2. The experiments presented in this investigation were clearly recorded on a geophone array containing up to 12 short-period vertical component stations, and a singular station recording the transverse and radial type of motion. A higher-mode, seismic, coupled wave from sonic booms has been observed for the first time. Correlation is made between the acoustical signal registered at the microphone stations in Cape Kennedy and the first impulsive onset of the seismic waves recorded at the array setup. The seismic waves coupled from sonic booms are explained as a constructive interference phenomenon in the surficial ground layers. Fourier-transform techniques are applied to some of the seismograms, and some interesting features are delineated.

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