Investigating Vegetation Responses to Underground Nuclear Explosions Through Integrated Analyses

Abstract

Plants occupy a unique space in the natural landscape via their connection to the subsurface through their roots, while still being observable above-ground (Maxwell & Condon, 2016). Their health may change to varying degrees as a result of a number of environmental and anthropogenic stressors (e.g., Mooney et al., 1991). Underground activities, like explosions, have the potential to impact plants in ways that are observable from the surface. Prior studies have explored the preservation of signatures resulting from underground explosion disturbances in other landscape features, such as topography and geomorphology (e.g.