A new way to generate seismic waves for continental crustal exploration

An airgun experiment was conducted in a reservoir, with the total volume of the airgun array being 6000 cubic inch. The energy released by one excitation was estimated to be 6.68x10(6) J, which corresponded to a 3.4 kg TNT explosion. A 180 km long profile composed of 100 portable short period seismometers was deployed as a receiver system of the airgun signals. Two remarkable results can be drawn from the experiment: (1) the airgun explosion is harmless to the dam and the fish, and this kind of airguns can be regarded a's a green and environmental protection seismic source on land; (2) seismic wave generated by this airgun source can be recorded by permanent stations with offset larger than 200 km. And the wave amplitudes recorded by nearby and remote stations are equivalent to the wave generated by 800 kg dynamite explosion. The airguns can be used as a light to illuminate the continental crustal structure of an area of about 100000 km(2).