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Geodetic determination of strain at the Nevada Test Site following the Handley event

James C. Savage·W. T. Kinoshita·W.H. Prescott
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Abstract

Repeated surveys of a trilateration network (aperture greater than 20 km) centered on ground zero for the HANDLEY event, a nuclear explosion at the Nevada Test Site with yield in excess of 1 megaton, suggest that the explosion induced an east-west extension of the network by more than 50 mm. In the year following the detonation, this deformation reversed such that the final configuration represented a small east-west contraction from the pre-HANDLEY state. In the subsequent 2-year period, only minor deformation was detected. Thus, the overall response of Pahute Mesa may be described as stable. The explosion-induced deformation is thought to be partly due to slip on faults driven by the large-amplitude seismic waves from the explosion. The mechanism of the postshot relaxation is not understood.

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Bulletin of the Seismological Society of AmericaArticle
90° N90° S · 180° W ← longitude → 180° E
Source-reported bounding extent: 37° to 37.3° latitude; -116.45° to -116.15° longitude. This indicates report coverage, not an exact sampling location. View area on OpenStreetMap.

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James C. Savage, W. T. Kinoshita, W.H. Prescott. 1974-02-01. Geodetic determination of strain at the Nevada Test Site following the Handley event. https://doi.org/10.1785/bssa0640010115

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