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  • © 2020

The Science and Engineering of Mechanical Shock

  • Presents mechanical shock from a structural dynamics perspective

  • Adopts a flexible structure supporting use as a reference for practicing engineers as well as a textbook for students of mechanical shock

  • Sheds light on less common and less well-understood spectra techniques, energy spectra methods, and non-spectral methods

  • Maximizes reader understanding of multi-degree-of-freedom shock spectra and multi-degree-of-freedom testing

  • Facilitates easy implementation computational analysis with algorithms and pseudo-code

  • Includes the history of mechanical shock analysis and testing up to the present

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Softcover Book USD 99.99
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Hardcover Book USD 159.99
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Table of contents (12 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xvi
  2. Introduction

    • Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška
    Pages 1-19
  3. Common Mechanical Shock Environments

    • Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška
    Pages 21-44
  4. Single Degree-of-Freedom Systems

    • Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška
    Pages 45-85
  5. Shock Environment Characterization Using Shock Response Spectra

    • Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška
    Pages 87-117
  6. Classical Shock Theory

    • Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška
    Pages 119-142
  7. Oscillatory and Complex Shock Theory

    • Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška
    Pages 143-164
  8. Design for Shock with SDOF Spectra

    • Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška
    Pages 165-197
  9. Multi-Degree-of-Freedom Systems

    • Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška
    Pages 199-227
  10. Shock Testing

    • Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška
    Pages 229-271
  11. Temporal Information

    • Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška
    Pages 273-292
  12. Development of Shock Test Specifications

    • Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška
    Pages 293-330
  13. Energy Spectra Methods

    • Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška
    Pages 331-344
  14. Back Matter

    Pages 345-362

About this book

This book fills a unique position in the literature as a dedicated mechanical shock analysis book. Because shock events can be extremely damaging, mechanical shock is an important topic for engineers to understand. This book provides the reader with the tools needed to quantitatively describe shock environments and their damage potential on aerospace, civil, naval and mechanical systems. The authors include the relevant history of how shock testing and analysis came to its current state and a discussion of the different types of shock environments typically experienced by systems. Development of single-degree-of-freedom theory and the theory of the shock response spectra are covered, consistent with treatment of shock spectra theory in the literature. 

What is unique is the expansion to other types of spectra including less common types of shock spectra and energy spectra methods using fundamental principles of structural dynamics. In addition, non-spectral methods are discussed with their applications. Non-spectral methods are almost completely absent from the current books on mechanical shock. Multi-degree-of-freedom shock spectra and multi-degree-of-freedom testing are discussed and the theory is developed. Addressing an emerging field for laboratory shock testing, the authors bring together information currently available only in journals and conference publications. 


The volume is ideal for engineers, structural designers, and structural materials fabricators needing a foundation to practically analyze shock environments and understand their role in structural design.

Authors and Affiliations

  • Albuquerque, USA

    Carl Sisemore, Vít Babuška

About the authors

Dr. Vit Babuška is an Aerospace Engineer and Principal Member of the Technical Staff at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he has worked since 2005. His current work addresses shock environments and structural mechanics model validation for shock loadings. Dr. Babuška’s experience spans environmental test including vibration and shock testing and requirements specification, structural dynamics, system identification and control of spacecraft systems, and signal processing. He has worked on various spaceflight programs and spacecraft R&D projects during his career.  He earned his Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering in 1993 from The University of Texas at Austin. 


Dr. Carl Sisemore is a Mechanical Engineer and Principal Member of the Technical Staff at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he has worked since 2014. His current work focuses on shock and vibration test specification development and analysis of shock and vibration test data. In addition, he has co-lead the shock margin assessment research project on Energy Spectra and mechanical shock. He earned his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Tennessee Technological University in 2001


Bibliographic Information

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 79.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 99.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access