Nonisotropic radiation of the 2013 North Korean nuclear explosion

0433175 - GFÚ 2015 RIV US eng J - Journal Article
Vavryčuk, Václav - Kim, S. G.
Nonisotropic radiation of the 2013 North Korean nuclear explosion.
Geophysical Research Letters. Roč. 41, č. 20 (2014), s. 7048-7056. ISSN 0094-8276. E-ISSN 1944-8007
R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GAP210/12/1491
Institutional support: RVO:67985530
Keywords : moment tensor * seismic waves * tectonic stress
Subject RIV: DC - Siesmology, Volcanology, Earth Structure
Impact factor: 4.196, year: 2014

On 12 February 2013, North Korea conducted an underground nuclear test in the northeastern mountainous part of the country. The explosion reached magnitude mb = 5.1 being recorded at most of seismic stations around the world and becoming one of the best ever recorded nuclear explosions in history. Similarly, as other nuclear explosions buried in Nevada, Kazakhstan, or China, the 2013 North Korean explosion is characterized by a significant nonisotropic radiation. This radiation is manifested by distinct SH and Love waves in the wave field and is inconsistent with the model of a spherically symmetric source. We show that the Love waves are not generated by a tectonic earthquake triggered on a nearby fault structures but produced by asymmetry of the explosive source caused by presence of deviatoric stress in the surrounding rock.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0237448