Steven R. Taylor and Farid U. Dowla
Spectral yield estimation of NTS explosions
Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (August 1991), 81(4):1292-1308

Abstract:
The yields of 299 NTS explosions have been estimated from Pn, Pg and Lg spectra (between 0.1 and 10 Hz) at four regional seismic stations. A spectral template matching technique is used where the spectra from an explosion of unknown yield are compared with the spectra of explosions of known yield. A matching function is defined that is a scaled inverse of the difference between the spectra from the known and unknown explosions. The yields from the seven closest matching explosions are then averaged to estimate the yield of the unknown event. The spectral matching technique appears to perform as well as standard regression techniques utilizing m (sub beta ) (Pn) and m (sub beta ) (Lg) measurements except that no geologic information (such as gas-filled porosity) is required. However, the spectral matching technique is only applicable to very well-calibrated test sites. The key to spectral matching is that the spectral shape is sensitive to the near-source geology. in addition to affecting the absolute spectral levels (i.e., coupling), the dynamic response of the near source material to the radiated shock wave is a major factor controlling the shape of the radiated spectra. The spectral shape can therefore be used as an indicator for predicting the coupling of an explosion, which can be subsequently used to predict its yield.