Shock wave generation by underwater discharge

Summary form only given. A model of shock wave generation in water by underwater electrical discharge initiated by a conducting wire is presented. We compare the model results with the velocities of the shock wave and the exploding wire expansion as monitored by a streak camera. In addition, different methods of shock wave measurements in a zone far from the explosion are described and compared. These methods include direct measurements of shock wave pressure by various types of gauges such as commercial PCB gauges as well as carbon resistor gauges, indirect methods such as the time of flight method, and optical methods including streak and fast framing photography. It is shown that signal processing is necessary for reconstruction of correct pressure waveforms from signals obtained by the PCB gauges. The comparison shows good agreement between the various methods.