On the Effect of Weak Attenuation of Acoustic Waves from High-Altitude Explosions

The article analyzes difficult to explain experimental data on acoustic signals recorded from explosions and injections of matter at heights of 120–150 km. It is noted that a significant part of the acoustic energy of high-altitude explosions reaches the Earth’s surface without significant absorption. Based on an analysis of a nonlocal three-flux gas-dynamic model, transformation of a strong blast wave in air into a continuous disturbance, a hypothesis is proffered about the sequential decay of a wave from a high-altitude explosion into wave packets (wave trains). A significant fraction of the blast energy should be transferred by such wave packets during their motion from top to bottom throughout the atmosphere, which should be virtually “transparent” to such acoustic disturbances.