Table of Contents
What are the four types of nuclear explosions?
Types of Bursts. The relative effects of blast, heat, and nuclear radiation will largely be determined by the altitude at which the weapon is detonated. Nuclear explosions are generally classified as air bursts, surface bursts, subsurface bursts, or high altitude bursts.
What is the TNT equivalent of a nuclear bomb?
Thus, a 1 kiloton nuclear weapon is one which produces the same amount of energy in an explosion as does 1 kiloton (1,000 tons) of TNT. Similarly, a 1 megaton weapon would have the energy equivalent of 1 million tons of TNT. One megaton is equivalent to 4.18 x 1015 joules.
What are the 3 impacts of a nuclear bomb?
The Effects of Nuclear Weapons Blast, thermal radiation, and prompt ionizing radiation cause significant destruction within seconds or minutes of a nuclear detonation. The delayed effects, such as radioactive fallout and other environmental effects, inflict damage over an extended period ranging from hours to years.
How big is the impact of a nuclear bomb?
In a typical air burst, where the blast range is maximized to produce the greatest range of severe damage, i.e. the greatest range that ~10 psi (69 kPa) of pressure is extended over, is a GR/ground range of 0.4 km for 1 kiloton (kt) of TNT yield; 1.9 km for 100 kt; and 8.6 km for 10 megatons (Mt) of TNT.
What is the largest nuclear explosion ever?
Tsar Bomba
On October 30, 1961, the Soviet Union tested the largest nuclear device ever created. The “Tsar Bomba,” as it became known, was 10 times more powerful than all the munitions used during World War II.
Why do bombs explode when they hit the ground?
A ground burst is the detonation of an explosive device such as an artillery shell, nuclear weapon or air-dropped bomb that explodes upon hitting the ground. These weapons are set off by fuses that are activated when the weapon strikes the ground or something equally hard, such as a concrete building.
What is the explosive yield of a nuclear weapon?
The explosive yield of a nuclear weapon is the amount of energy released when that particular nuclear weapon is detonated, usually expressed as a TNT equivalent (the standardized equivalent mass of trinitrotoluene which, if detonated, would produce the same energy discharge), either in kilotons…
What is the difference between a nuclear explosion and conventional explosion?
One of the fundamental differences between a nuclear and a conventional explosion is that nuclear explosions can be many thousands (or millions) of times more powerful than the largest conventional detonations. Both types of weapons rely on the destructive force of the blast or shock wave.
What percentage of energy is released when a nuclear bomb is fired?
Approximately 85 percent of the energy of a nuclear weapon produces air blast (and shock), thermal energy (heat). The remaining 15 percent of the energy is released as various type of nuclear radiation.
What is the energy of a 1 megaton nuclear weapon?
Thus, a 1 kiloton nuclear weapon is one which produces the same amount of energy in an explosion as does 1 kiloton (1,000 tons) of TNT. Similarly, a 1 megaton weapon would have the energy equivalent of 1 million tons of TNT. One megaton is equivalent to 4.18 x 10 15 joules.