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THEORY @ THE SHOCK WAVE PRODUCED BY AN 
UNDERWATER EXPLOSION 
1. Introduction 
When a spherical charge of explosive submerged in a large body 
of water is detonated at its center, the following sequence of events oc- 
curs. A detonation wave travels from the center toward the surface of the 
charge, converting the explosive into certain decomposition products. At 
the instant of arrival of the front of the detonation wave at the boundary 
of the charge, a shock wave advances into the water, the boundary of radius 
a(t) moves forward, and a reflected wave recedes into the gas sphere, com- 
posed of the products of the explosion. The reflected wave, according to 
the circumstances, may initially be a shock wave, but it must rapidly be- 
come a wave of rarefaction in the region behind the advancing boundary a(t) 
1/ Physical Chemist, Explosives Branch, Bureau of Mines, U. S. Department 
of the Interior. 
2/ Professor of Chemistry, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, 
California. 
