Linear Elastic Waves

Abstract

Elastic waves propagating in simple media manifest a surprisingly rich collection of phenomena. Although some can't withstand the complexities of Earth's structure, the majority only grow more interesting and more important as remote sensing probes for seismologists studying the planet's interior. To fully mine the information carried to the surface by seismic waves, seismologists must produce accurate models of the waves. Great strides have been made in this regard. Problems that were entirely intractable a decade ago are now routinely solved on inexpensive workstations. The mathematical representations of waves coded into algorithms have grown vastly more sophisticated and are troubled by many fewer approximations, enforced symmetries, and limitations. They are far from straightforward, and seismologists using them need a firm grasp on wave propagation in simple media. Linear Elastic Waves , by applied mathematician John G. Harris, responds to this need.