EXPLOSION AIRBLAST PROGRAM "BLASTO", FOR WEATHER-DEPENDENT PREDICTIONS ON A PERSONAL COMPUTER

Overview & Synopsis

An airblast prediction program for explosions, called BLASTO has been written for use with IBM-PC (or compatible) computers, to produce overpressure-distance curves for a variety of interactive input conditions. Several common units are allowed for each input, but calculation and output are in SI metric units. Explosion yield (chemical or nuclear) and ambient atmospheric pressure are used to generate a referenced 'Standard' overpressure-distance curve. Explosives may be point charges at any height above ground or depth below the earth surface. Buried charges may also be distributed in a sheet, or 'HEST' configuration, but a mining model for a number of point charges with firing delays has not yet been developed. If upper air weather data or forecasts are available, they can be used to generate directed (wind effects) sound velocity versus height structures which are interpreted to give attenuated or enhanced overpressure-distance curves. These are calculated for incremented directions around the compass or toward specified targets or communities.