Seismology Research
Bringing together seismology and atmospheric sciences
An overview of infrasound data acquisition, processing and interpretation
January 2004
Läslo Evers
The whole trajectory of data acquisition, processing and interpretation is
described in this web article. The KNMI operates three infrasound arrays;
the Deelen Infrasound Array (DIA) is configured with 16 KNMI microbarometers, and
acquisitional considerations (instrument and array response) of DIA are described.
Array processing techniques, like frequency slowness analysis combined with
Fisher statistics, are explained and examplified. This technique enables
the detection and identification of infrasonic sources. Raytracing through
actual and empirical models is performed, to understand the observations
of infrasound. Depending on the source characteristics and
source receiver distance, different areas of atmosphere are probed.
Infrasonic data which followed high atmospheric trajectories, i.e. higher than the
troposphere, are well modeled. Tropospheric arrival are more difficult to model.
Accounting for the instability of the troposphere (turbulence and inhomogeneity)
might solve this ambiguity.