Infrasound From Large Earthquakes Recorded on a Network of Balloons in the Stratosphere

Raphael F. Garcia (1) , Adrien Klotz (1) , Albert Hertzog (2) , Roland Martin (3) , Solène Gérier (1) , Ervan Kassarian (1) , Jérôme Bordereau (2, 4) , Stéphanie Venel (5) , David Mimoun (1)

1 ISAE-SUPAERO - Institut Supérieur de l'Aéronautique et de l'Espace
2 LMD - Laboratoire de Météorologie Dynamique (UMR 8539)
3 GET - Géosciences Environnement Toulouse
4 CNES - Centre National d’Études Spatiales [Paris]
5 CNES - Centre National d'Études Spatiales [Toulouse]

The ground movements induced by seismic waves create acoustic waves propagating upward in the atmosphere, thus providing a practical solution to perform remote sensing of planetary interiors. However, a terrestrial demonstration of a seismic network based on balloon-carried pressure sensors has not been provided. Here we present the first detection of seismic infrasound from a large magnitude quake on a balloon network. We demonstrate that quake's properties and planet's internal structure can be probed from balloon-borne pressure records alone because these are generated by the ground movements at the planet surface below the balloon. Various seismic waves are identified, thus allowing us to infer the quake magnitude and location, as well as planetary internal structure. The mechanical resonances of balloon system are also observed. This study demonstrates the interest of planetary geophysical mission concepts based on seismic remote sensing with balloon platforms, and their interest to complement terrestrial seismic networks.

Keywords: quake; stratospheric balloon; pressure sensor; Venus; solid Earth; infrasound

Domains: Sciences of the Universe [physics]

Raphael F. Garcia, Adrien Klotz, Albert Hertzog, Roland Martin, Solène Gérier, et al.. Infrasound From Large Earthquakes Recorded on a Network of Balloons in the Stratosphere. Geophysical Research Letters, 2022, 49, ⟨10.1029/2022GL098844⟩. ⟨insu-03778095⟩