An explosion is a sudden increase in volume and release of energy in an extreme manner, usually with the generation of high temperatures and the release of gases. The volume of any solid plasma vacuum or theoretical object is how much three- Dimensional space it occupies often quantified numerically In Physics and other Sciences energy (from the Greek grc ἐνέργεια - Energeia, "activity operation" from grc ἐνεργός Temperature is a physical property of a system that underlies the common notions of hot and cold something that is hotter generally has the greater temperature This page is about the physical properties of gas as a state of matter An explosion creates a shock wave. For the music album by Converter see Shock Front For the 1977 horror film see Shock Waves A shock wave (also called
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Types of explosives
Natural
Explosions do not commonly occur in nature. Below Earth, most natural explosions arise from volcanic processes of various sorts. Plate tectonics and hotspots Divergent plate boundaries At the Explosive volcanic eruptions occur when magma rising from below has much dissolved gas in it; the reduction of pressure as the magma rises causes the gas to bubble out of solution, resulting in a rapid increase in volume. Magma (Plurals magmas and magmata) is molten rock that sometimes forms beneath the surface of the Earth (or any other Terrestrial planet Pressure (symbol 'p' is the force per unit Area applied to an object in a direction perpendicular to the surface Explosions also occur as a result of impact events. See also Impact crater An impact event is the Collision of a large Meteoroid, Asteroid or Comet (generically On other planets, volcanoes and impacts cause explosions with various frequency. Plate tectonics and hotspots Divergent plate boundaries At the
Chemical
The most common artificial explosives are chemical explosives, usually involving a rapid and violent oxidation reaction that produces large amounts of hot gas. An explosive material is a material that either is chemically or otherwise Energetically unstable or produces a sudden expansion of the material usually accompanied An explosive material is a material that either is chemically or otherwise Energetically unstable or produces a sudden expansion of the material usually accompanied A chemical substance is a Material with a definite chemical composition. Redox (shorthand for reduction-oxidation reaction describes all Chemical reactions in which atoms have their Oxidation number ( Oxidation state Gunpowder was the first explosive to be discovered and put to use. Gunpowder is a an explosive mixture of Sulfur, Charcoal and Potassium nitrate (also known as saltpetre/saltpeter that burns rapidly producing volumes Other notable early developments in chemical explosive technology were Frederick Augustus Abel's development of nitrocellulose in 1865 and Alfred Nobel's invention of dynamite in 1866. Sir Frederick Augustus Abel 1st Baronet FRS ( 17 July 1827 &ndash 6 September 1902) was an English Chemist. Nitrocellulose (also cellulose nitrate, flash paper) is a highly flammable compound formed by Nitrating Cellulose through exposure to Year 1865 ( MDCCCLXV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year (21 October 1833 Stockholm, Sweden – 10 December 1896 Sanremo, Italy) was a Swedish chemist engineer innovator armaments manufacturer Dynamite is an explosive based on the explosive potential of Nitroglycerin, initially using Diatomaceous earth (kieselgur US Spelling kieselguhr Year 1866 ( MDCCCLXVI) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common
Nuclear
A nuclear weapon is a type of explosive weapon that derives its destructive force from the nuclear reaction of fission or from a combination of fission and fusion. The energy released from a nuclear weapon detonated in the Troposphere can be divided into four basic categories Blast &mdash40-50% of total energy As a result, even a nuclear weapon with a small yield is significantly more powerful than the largest conventional explosives available, with a single weapon capable of destroying an entire city.
Electrical
A high current electrical fault can create an electrical explosion by forming a high energy electrical arc which rapidly vaporizes metal and insulation material. An electric arc is an Electrical breakdown of a gas which produces an ongoing plasma discharge, resulting from a current flowing through normally nonconductive Also, excessive magnetic pressure within an ultra-strong electromagnet can cause a magnetic explosion. Magnetic pressure is an Energy density associated with the Magnetic field. An electromagnet is a type of Magnet in which the Magnetic field is produced by the flow of an electric current.
Vapour
Boiling liquid expanding vapour explosions are a type of explosion that can occur when a vessel containing a pressurized liquid is ruptured, causing a rapid increase in volume as the liquid evaporates. BLEVE, pronounced /ˈblɛvi/ ("blevvy" is an Acronym for " boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion "
Astronomical
Solar flares are an example of explosion common on the Sun, and presumably on most other stars as well. A solar flare is a violent explosion in a star's (like the Sun 's atmosphere releasing as much Energy as 6 × 1025 Joules Solar flares The Sun (Sol is the Star at the center of the Solar System. A star is a massive luminous ball of plasma. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the Energy on Earth The energy source for solar flare activity comes from the tangling of magnetic field lines resulting from the rotation of the Sun's conductive plasma. In Physics, a magnetic field is a Vector field that permeates space and which can exert a magnetic force on moving Electric charges In Physics and Chemistry, plasma is an Ionized Gas, in which a certain proportion of Electrons are free rather than being bound
Mechanical
Strictly a physical process, as opposed to chemical or nuclear, eg, a the bursting of a sealed or partially-sealed container under internal pressure is often referred to as a 'mechanical explosion'. Examples include an overheated boiler or a simple tin can of beans tossed into a fire. A BLEVE (see above) is one type of mechanical explosion, but depending on the contents of the container, the effects can be dramatically more serious - consider a propane tank in the midst of a fire. BLEVE, pronounced /ˈblɛvi/ ("blevvy" is an Acronym for " boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion " In such a case, to the limited effects of the simple mechanical explosion when the tank fails are added the chemical explosion resulting from the released (initially liquid and then almost instanteaously gaseous) propane in the presence of an ignition source. For this reason, emergency workers often differentiate between the two events.
Among the largest known explosions in the universe are supernovae, which result from stars exploding, and gamma ray bursts, whose nature is still in some dispute. A supernova (plural supernovae or supernovas) is a stellar Explosion. Gamma-ray bursts ( GRB s are the most luminous electromagnetic events occurring in the Universe since the Big Bang.
Notable explosions
- Further information: List of the largest artificial non-nuclear explosions
Chemical explosions
- Nanaimo mine explosion 1887
- Halifax Explosion 1917
- Battle of Messines 1917
- Oppau explosion, Ludwigshafen, Germany 1921
- Bombay Blasts 1944
- Port Chicago disaster 1944
- RAF Fauld explosion 1944
- Texas City Disaster 1947
- Nedelin catastrophe 1960
- Soviet N1 rocket explosion 1969
- Flixborough disaster 1974
- PEPCON disaster, Henderson, Nevada 1988
- Ryongchon disaster 2004
- Hertfordshire Oil Storage Terminal 2005
- Albania explosion Gerdec 2008
Nuclear testing
Use in war
Exploding volcanoes
See also
Since the invention of High explosives there have been a number of extremely large explosions many accidental The Nanaimo mine explosion on May 3, 1887, in Nanaimo, British Columbia killed 150 Miners and was the largest man-made explosion The Halifax Explosion occurred on Thursday December 6, 1917, when the city of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, was devastated by the The Battle of Messines was a battle of the western front of World War I. The Oppau explosion occurred on September 21 1921 when a tower silo storing 4500 tonnes of a mixture of Ammonium sulfate and The Port Chicago disaster was a deadly Explosion that took place on July 17 1944 at the Port Chicago Naval Magazine in Port Chicago The RAF Fauld explosion was a military Accident which occurred at 1111am on Monday 27 November 1944 at the RAF Fauld underground Munitions The Texas City Disaster of April 16, 1947, started with the mid-morning fire and detonation of approximately 2300 tons of Ammonium nitrate on board the The Nedelin catastrophe or Nedelin disaster was a launch pad accident that occurred on 24 October 1960, at Baikonur Cosmodrome during the development N1 or N-1 was the secret Soviet Rocket intended to send Soviet Cosmonauts to the Moon. The Flixborough disaster was an Explosion at a chemical plant close to the village of Flixborough (near Scunthorpe) North Lincolnshire, The PEPCON disaster was an Industrial disaster that occurred in Henderson Nevada on May 4, 1988 at the Pacific Engineering Production Company Henderson is a city in Clark County, Nevada, United States adjacent to the Las Vegas metropolitan area; it is located mainly to the southeast The Ryongchŏn disaster was a Train disaster that occurred in the town of Ryongchŏn, North Korea near the border with China on April The Hertfordshire Oil Storage Terminal (HOSL - Hertfordshire Oil Storage Ltd generally known as the Buncefield oil depot, is an Oil depot located on the edge of The 2008 Gërdec explosions occurred on Saturday 15 March 2008 at around noon at an ex-military ammunition depot in village Gerdec – Vora Municipality (14 Trinity was the first test of technology for a Nuclear weapon. Castle Bravo was the Code name given to the first US test of a so-called dry fuel thermonuclear Hydrogen bomb device detonated on March 1, Tsar Bomba (ru Царь-бомба literally " King Bomb" is the Western name for the RDS-220 hydrogen bomb (codenamed "Иван" (Ivan by its The Japanese city of ( is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture, and the largest city in the Chūgoku region of western Honshū, the largest of Japan 's ( is the Capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture in Japan. Krakatoa ( Indonesian: Krakatau) also spelled Krakatao or Krakatowa, is a volcanic island in the Sunda Strait Mount St Helens is an active Stratovolcano located in Skamania County, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States Mount Tambora (or Tomboro) is an active Stratovolcano, also known as a Composite volcano, on Sumbawa island Indonesia. Mount Pinatubo is an active Stratovolcano located on the island of Luzon The Yellowstone Caldera is the volcanic Caldera in Yellowstone National Park in the United States. A dust explosion is the explosive Combustion of a dust suspended in air in an enclosed location Implosion is a process in which objects are destroyed by collapsing in on themselves An underwater explosion, also known as an UNDEX, is an Explosion beneath the surface of water A mushroom cloud is a distinctive Mushroom -shaped Cloud of condensed Water vapor or Debris resulting from a very large Explosion.Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic