Better networks for test ban monitoring

From first to last, the conclusion of a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty has hinged critically on the development of a credible system for detecting explosions and identifying cheaters. Now, with the flowering of seismic networks depending on the digital taking, transmission, and processing of data, such a system appears to be in hand-an achievement all the more remarkable in that the demands on the monitoring system have grown in some ways greater and more complex than ever before. The author describes how, because of the digital revolution in real-time data communication and processing, first-time nuclear tests occurring anywhere on Earth can be promptly identified.