Worlds largest thermonuclear explosion

[Lamp]

Video of Bomb deployment, detonation, aftermath, & simulated effect if dropped on London
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2046393742348211186

Wikidepdia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsar_Bomba


Fascinating. Awesome. Scary.

 

[eggy]

Idiots.

 

[Sparx]

wow, london would just be gone, well at least essex would go too, thats something at least

 

[cHodAX]

One way to get Eastenders off the air I suppose

 

[Marc]

Wish they would of dropped it on wigan

 

[Lamp]

Mushroom clouds are formed by many sorts of large explosions, though they are best known for their appearance after nuclear detonations. Nuclear weapons are usually detonated above the ground (not upon impact) in order to maximize the effect of their spherical expanding fireball. After immediate detonation, the fireball itself begins to rise into the air, acting on the same principle as a hot-air balloon. While it rises, air is drawn into it and upwards (similar to the updraft of a chimney), producing strong air currents known as "afterwinds", while inside the head of the cloud the hot gases rotate in a toroid shape. When the detonation itself is low enough, these afterwinds will draw in dirt and debris from the ground below to form the stem of the mushroom cloud.

Detonations produced high above the ground do not create mushroom clouds. The heads of the clouds themselves consist of highly-radioactive particles and other fission products, and usually are dispersed by the wind, though weather patterns (especially rain) can produce problematic nuclear fallout.

Detonations below ground or water level (for instance, nuclear depth charges) also do not produce mushroom clouds, as the explosion causes the vaporization of a huge amount of earth and water in these instances.

Nuclear mushroom clouds are often also accompanied by short-lived vapor clouds or vapor rings. These are created by the blast wave causing a sudden drop in the surrounding air temperatures, causing water vapor in the air to condense around the explosion cloud.

 

[Calaen]

Lol Chodax

 

[WiZe^]

all chav's *poff* gone

 

[Dukat]

oh look... a 60km high mushroom cloud...

and thats roughly HALF the size possible in 1961???

Dont even want to think about what is possible nowadays...

 

[Cozak]

110mile fireball.. Wonder what level that bomb has trained FB to ;o

 

[Haggus]

Imagine what would happen if it were to hit the ground

 

[Lamp]

Dont even want to think about what is possible nowadays...

These days, they prefer smaller, tactical warheads. The US would utilise "carpet bombing" as they believe this creates more ground devestation than dropping one large nuke.

Still doesn't negate the airborne radiation. It gets carried by atmospheric winds and affects the entire planet. The Windscale nuclear disaster didn't just affect Cumbria. The meltdown at Long Island didn't just affect America. We're still seeing radiation sicknesses and deaths from Chernobyl. The once beautiful Pacific atols are now radiated for all time, as is the entire region of the Nevada Test Site. Think that hasn't irradiated the water table around Las Vegas ? And God knows what damage underground and undersea testing has done and continues to do.

America still hasn't ratified the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.

I'm not against nuclear weapons per se. But the dichotomy of the need to have thermonuclear stock piles versus how to test them with minimal effects on our planet is based on politics not morality or ethical humanitarianism.

 

[Fana]

I find it scarey how the Discovery reporter in the movieclip sounds mostly excited about the prospect of it detonating over london Too much technology worship.

 

[Fana]

I'm not against nuclear weapons per se.

M.A.D (mutual assured destruction) is great in theory, as it makes the superpowers hesistant to take each other on in a heads on conflict, but one day there will be direct conflict between nations having access to nuclear weapons regardless - all it takes is one new suitably deranged hitler type person rising to power, or one "unsolvable" conflict (such as the coming oil shortage), and we will see nukes used in warfare again with devatstating results for the entire world. Right now there are enough nukes on the planet to send us back to the stoneage.

 

[Dukat]

These days, they prefer smaller, tactical warheads. The US would utilise "carpet bombing" as they believe this creates more ground devestation than dropping one large nuke.

Yea, I know what you mean, not to mention the fact that using nuclear weapons in a conflict is seen as a line that not many developed nations would want to cross.

still what I meant was whats possible rather than preferable. Nuclear weapons are meant as a deterrant rather than a weapon that will actually be used (atleast I would hope so). but if modern day technology was pushed with the aim of creating a bomb with as many megatons as possible, I hate to think what that number would be.

 

[Overdriven]

oh look... a 60km high mushroom cloud...

Cheers, new sig :]

 

[Lamp]

It goes beyond issues of megatons. Quite simply if there's a deliberate release of nuclear weapons against another country then its game over for us all. Countries not directly involved in the conflict will use it as an excuse (whether on religious or strategic grounds) to at best go to DEFCON 1, and at worse, retaliate / launch pre-emptive / coercive nuclear strikes.

Israel has stated on record that if any country (and lets face it, its going to be one of their middle-eastern enemies) strikes them with chemical weapons, they'll retaliate with nuclear weapons.

Iran is building a nuclear weapons programme (even though they deny it, of course).

The middle east is a flash pan. Its only two hops and a jump from all out war.

Then there's India and Pakistan.

North Korea.

Well funded terrorist organisations who can afford 100m dollars for hi grade weapons plutonium.

Assuming you live through the bombs, there will be so much radiation virtually the entire world will be effected. Unborn babies will be affected. Global water supplies. The environment will be fucked. The very air we breathe will give a massively increased chance of cancers for generations to come. You wanna live through that ?

 

[Ame]

Mushroom clouds are formed by many sorts of large explosions, though they are best known for their appearance after nuclear detonations. Nuclear weapons are usually detonated above the ground (not upon impact) in order to maximize the effect of their spherical expanding fireball. After immediate detonation, the fireball itself begins to rise into the air, acting on the same principle as a hot-air balloon. While it rises, air is drawn into it and upwards (similar to the updraft of a chimney), producing strong air currents known as "afterwinds", while inside the head of the cloud the hot gases rotate in a toroid shape. When the detonation itself is low enough, these afterwinds will draw in dirt and debris from the ground below to form the stem of the mushroom cloud.

Detonations produced high above the ground do not create mushroom clouds. The heads of the clouds themselves consist of highly-radioactive particles and other fission products, and usually are dispersed by the wind, though weather patterns (especially rain) can produce problematic nuclear fallout.

Detonations below ground or water level (for instance, nuclear depth charges) also do not produce mushroom clouds, as the explosion causes the vaporization of a huge amount of earth and water in these instances.

Nuclear mushroom clouds are often also accompanied by short-lived vapor clouds or vapor rings. These are created by the blast wave causing a sudden drop in the surrounding air temperatures, causing water vapor in the air to condense around the explosion cloud.

Someone knows a bit too much about nuclear weaponry. Are you trying to tell us something?

 

[evzy]

Well that was some depressing shit to watch before bed

Might go paint me windows white to reflect the blast n sleep under my table - supposed to work isnt it?

 

[Ezteq]

Lamp: Assuming you live through the bombs, there will be so much radiation virtually the entire world will be effected. Unborn babies will be affected. Global water supplies. The environment will be fucked. The very air we breathe will give a massively increased chance of cancers for generations to come. You wanna live through that ?

See!! this is what annoys the hell out of me, we're not content to wipe ourselves out but we have to make the planet uninhabitable for everything else too!

if people kill other people, then more pile in then we all end up having a big barney and becoming extinct it would be the best thing to happen and the world would be a great place, the only pisser is none of us will be about to enjoy it and if it did happen the world would probably be so abused nothing could survive here. So at the risk of sounding a bit radical here, why the hell isnt that enticement enough to promote peace?? doesnt everyone want to live safe nice lives?

No because we're arse holes thats why, damn people i bloody hate them i really do tbh if i had a device that would repell them like the shark POD i'd bloody strap me self in and live a life of hermitude (not sure if thats a real word but im adopting it) quite merrily all alone with no one to irritate or bomb, rob, rape, threaten, harrass or in any other way get up my arse, bastards the lot of them they really are.

/sign

 

[Dillinja]

Depressing fact:

I read somewhere a while ago that approximately 80,000 people in the USA born between 1960 and 2000 will contract cancer as a result of atmospheric testing, and around 15,000 of these cases will be fatal. Studies were not carried out in other countries but I would assume that the ratio would be about the same. However, us Europeans might be luckier since I don't know of any nuclear tests that have been carried out near Europe. I think the yanks tended to do theirs in nevada, the french in the pacific, russians in russia I suppose, and us british in australia. Saying that though, I'm not sure how background radiation works in the long term, maybe it just ends up blanketing the earth evenly - in which case we would all be at an even risk.

Anyway, this planet's fucked. Sometimes I wish I was born about 2000 years ago as a Roman or about 500 years ago in medieval England or something. No bullshit nuclear weapons/global warming to worry about then. At least the planet was pure and unspoilt.

 

[Mikah75]

all chav's *poff* gone

yup
they should send them all to "happy camp's"

 

[Lamp]

I don't know of any nuclear tests that have been carried out near Europe

The largest thermonuclear detonation ever - Tsar Bomba - all 57000 megatones - was closest to europe than any other atmospheric nuclear test.

Windscale in the UK resulted in collossal amounts of radioactive fallout and fission debris falling over the whole of northern England.

Chernobyl spread its deadly fissile material over the entire globe. Radioactive particles are still ionising in the soil and atmosphere.

 

[evzy]

Can't we like cheer this thread up a bit and talk about stuff like fluffy clouds and baby panda's..

Or is someone gonna tell me how a bomb would turn all clouds blood red and burn the fur off the panda's flesh before it explodes in a fireball....

 

[[SS]Gamblor]

tactical warheads

that phrase always reminds me of a conversation i had with one of my best mates a few years back

Him ~: what we need here is a Tactical Nuke
Me :wtf .. that's like going , Can i have my Tactical Hammer to open this egg please.