FOIA: A Regional Crustal Phase Observatory

A_REGIONAL_CRUSTAL_PHASE_OBSERVATOR Y.pdf
A Regional Crustal Phase Observatory
A geoscience report named 'A Regional Crustal Phase Observatory' concerning the monitoring of seismic events prepared for the Air Force.
Document date: 1995-02-14
Department: Dept. of GeoSciences, Boise State University
Author: J.E. Zollweg
Document type: report
pages: 16


Archivist's Notes: A good quality report. Marks include inclues a DD-Form 1473 83 Apr report documentation page and DTIC Selected 1995-03-03 stamp. Unlimited distribution.

Report to Air Force Office of Scientific Research about
a Regional Crustal Phase Observatory.
Document is 16 pages.
Dated: 14 Feb 1995 Written by James Edward Zollweg of Boise State University.
This document was originally categorized as ‘unclassified’.

This document updates the AFO on the project to re-activate the
Blue Mountains Observatory (BMO)in northeastern Oregon.
It gives a background of why the site was chosen, the original use of the Observatory, the existing structures that are being utilized, the new uses when the upgrade is completed, the details of how and where the data will be directed for interpretation and archiving.

Background: BMO operated as a Vela array from 1962 to 1975.
The military’s motivation for re-activating BMO is to develop their
ability to be the global monitor of nuclear tests…at the time of nuclear test bans.
The primary function of the new BMO was to be used to develop the
methodology and test potential accuracy of Crustal Phase data collection, of the order
of 2 to 2.5 magnitude – to discriminate between small explosions and earthquakes via focal depth determination.

The report explains that once the station is up and running, the data will
be digitized and directed via a duplex radio link to Boise State University where a receiver is mounted on the 8-storey Education building where the information will be interpreted and archived, as well as accessible to other interested parties.

There are two diagrams, showing both the original array geometry plus the
new installation array geometry. There are also graphs of seismic data and maps
of the region showing seismic activity.

The report is quite legible and no blanked out areas.

This document is about the reactivation of an array of seismometers in the Blue Mountain Observatory (BMO) in 1995, which previously was part of Project Vela Uniform from 1962 to 1975. Vela Uniform was another aspect to the overall Project Vela, but is not really related to the Vela Incident, in which a Vela Satellite detected a suspected atmospheric nuclear detonation in the Indian Ocean, south of Africa, on September 22, 1979.

The Vela Array of seismometers was to be used to study low level seismic activity in hopes of modeling a potential low yield nuclear detonation. In the Introduction it explains that the area of the Blue Ridge Mountains was susceptible to earthquakes in the range of 2.0 to 2.5 on the Richter scale at depths of 0 to 80 km, so that made it a good location to work on determining the depth of a seismic event.

The report goes into different configurations of arrays and data collection and integrating with GPS information. This sounds exactly like new requirements needed for monitoring nuclear testing in the 21st Century, described in another related document listed below.

Related FOIA Documents:
FOIA: Perspectives on New Nuclear Monitoring Challenges

Related Links:
Wikipedia article on the Vela Incident
Wikipedia article on Vela Uniform