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has cooperated with LASL for the past year.
Sandia has also recently made a feasibility study for the DOD on the operation

of unattended seismic stations.

Done in consultation with BTL, “The study in-

cluded consideration of such things as the basic design of the individual stations,
what type of communication system would best serve to connect the various unmanned
sites (spaced perhaps 170 kilometers apart) to the control posts, what probable
overall reliability could be expected from the system, and how many stations
would be required to provide adequate data, taking into consideration the normal

ground noise which would be encountered.”

Among other things, the study determined

that stations constructed according to these specifications could be left un-

attended for four months, "the cost of establishing the unmanned communication
network necessary for 850 unmanned stations would be comparable to the cost of
establishing the communication facilities for the original Vienna network of 21

control posts."
Under the heading of HE projects, Sandia is in various stages of stagecoach,

toboggan, buckboard, and scooter.

Furthermore, Sandia has done some fairly ex-

tensive experiments in Nevada in the desert alluvium to investigate the "optimum
depth of burst for various energy charges which would produce the most efficient
cratering effects from. nuclear explosives."

Further, they are attempting to address

the ratio between the effeciency of HE and nuclear explosions at various depths of
burial.

One of the appendices address the "radiation effects program,” studying since 1956
4

the effectsof nuclear radiation on weapon materials and components.

Some of the

specific objectives are to assure functioning of weapons when exposed to other

nuclear bursts;

to evaluate the possible deterioration of fumetions if a weapon

is carried by a nuclear-powered vehicle; and addressing the radiation effects
problems encountered by reactor materials and instrumentation and by weapon
earrier electronics.

Select target paragraph3