Project Tugboat: Explosive Excavation of a Harbor in Coral

Abstract

A portion of a planned small boat harbor was explosively excavated in a weak coral material using twelve 10-ton charges of an aluminized ammonium nitrate slurry explosive. The charges were emplaced approximately 36 feet deep in the coral reef which was overlain with about an average 6-foot depth of water. Charges were spaced 100 feet and 120 feet apart. A series of five calibration tests preceded the main harbor detonations. The detonations resulted in a channel varying in width from about 150 feet to 260 feet at a minimum project water depth of 12 feet. The berthing basin is almost a square area 400 feet on a side at the 12-foot water depth contour.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 01, 1972
Accession Number
AD0754534

Entities

People

  • Colin C. Mcaneny
  • D. L. Harris
  • Dennis Berg
  • Kenneth Sakai
  • Paul Kawamoto
  • Richard Kanayame
  • Robert R. Ballard Jr.
  • Wade Wnuk
  • Walter C. Day

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Counter IED
  • Sensors
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Fish
  • Habitats
  • Medical Personnel
  • Wildlife

Fields of Study

  • Geology

Readers

  • Coastal and Marine Engineering/Sediment Transport/Hydraulic Engineering
  • Geotechnical Engineering.
  • Hydraulic Engineering.

Technology Areas

  • Space