U.S. Mimics "Decoupled" Nuclear Detonation By Blowing Up A Tunnel Conventionally

The U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration detonated conventional high explosives in a tunnel at the Nevada National Security Site to imitate the signals of a decoupled underground nuclear explosion. Arrays of accelerometers, seismometers, infrasound sensors, electromagnetic instruments, chemical and radiotracer detectors, and weather equipment recorded the event. The research is intended to improve detection and characterization of clandestine underground tests that use cavities to reduce seismic signatures. No nuclear material was detonated, and the experiment was a controlled verification study rather than a weapons test.