WHAT IS A BETSY GUN?
Betsy Guns are seismic sources that use propellant (gun powder) to produce deep penetrating acoustic energy, down to 2km in good conditions.
They not considered a firearm by the BATFE, that can be shipped, stored and safely used by any seismic practitioner in the US and Canada.
Betsy Guns are lightweight, portable, and have a minimal environmental impact.
Betsy Gun - Powder Actuated Seismic Source
The data-quality of explosives - accessible to anyone
The data-quality of explosives - accessible to anyone
The data-quality of explosives - accessible to anyone
The BFG-1000 is suitable for investigations from the shallow subsurface down to 2 km.
Portable enough to deploy in extreme environments
The data-quality of explosives - accessible to anyone
The data-quality of explosives - accessible to anyone
Betsy Guns are configurable to be used in remote and extreme environments.
Low-impact and suitable for sensitive environments
The data-quality of explosives - accessible to anyone
Low-impact and suitable for sensitive environments
The BFG-1000 uses blank ammunition for a near zero environmental impact.
What Sets The Betsy Gun BFG-1000 Apart?
Safety
- Redesigned with user safety as the top priority, today's Betsy Guns are safer than a sledgehammer.
- The BFG-1000 is electronically initiated allowing users to stand safely away from the system.
Data Quality
- 117kJ of energy per shot, equivalent to one hundred 16lb sledgehammer blows.
- Frequencies as low as 2Hz enable deep penetrating seismic reflections down to 2 km depth and enable processing techniques like FWI.
- Great for refraction studies in noisy or highly attenuative environments.
- Frequencies up to 200 Hz produce high resolution imagery in the shallow subsurface.
- Ideal source for surface-wave analysis and site hazard classification. allowing shear wave velocity estimation down to ~300 m
- Generates tube waves that are a source of vertically polarized shear waves (Sv).
Accessibility
- Betsy Guns are affordable, durable, and easy to maintain.
- The Betsy Gun is not considered a firearm by the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
- Blank ammunition is exempted from most ammunition laws in the US, and can be shipped to any state or US territory.
- Betsy Guns and ammunition are available in the US and Canada.
