View Full Version : Worlds biggest non nuclear explosion
mehrshadvr4
11-23-2006, 03:03 PM
http://www.trendpimp.com/media/542/Worlds_biggest_non_nuclear_explosion.html
Kitdy
11-23-2006, 03:29 PM
Is that really the largest non-nuclear explosion? I think Halifax Harbour was bigger. I will look into it.
adrenaline
11-23-2006, 07:50 PM
Wow that was big. I don't think it's the biggest non nuclear though :)
johnnynumfiv
11-23-2006, 08:00 PM
That is awesome. Thanks for sharing the vid.
The_Canuck
11-23-2006, 08:07 PM
Unfortuanatly, this was bigger...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halifax_Explosion
The most powerful non-nuclear weapon ever designed is the MOAB (standing for Massive Ordnance Air Blast, also nicknamed Mother Of All Bombs). It packs 18.7 tons of the H6 explosive, which is 1.35 times as powerful as TNT. This gives the bomb an approximate yield of 0.025 kt; it has been used on the battlefield in Afghanistan. As a matter of comparison, it would require 118 MOABs to equate the Halifax Explosion
johnnynumfiv
11-23-2006, 08:18 PM
They said 9 million pounds of explosives were in the factory when it blew up. That's about 9 times the amount in the halifax explosion.
The_Canuck
11-23-2006, 08:19 PM
Hmm, wasn't it 9 million pounds of Propane?
Vindesh17
11-23-2006, 08:37 PM
As far as I can remember it was Halifax. Nothing else compares to the destruction those two ships caused(speaking of non-nuclear of course).
johnnynumfiv
11-23-2006, 08:56 PM
Hmm, wasn't it 9 million pounds of Propane?
Rocket fuel.
And vindesh, if that explosion in the video happened in a town, it would prolly be worse than the halifax boom.
The_Canuck
11-23-2006, 09:03 PM
I don't think rocket fuel explodes with the same ferocity as TNT.
But who cares both were big, one was tragic.
The_Canuck
11-23-2006, 09:06 PM
The ship was instantly vaporised in the giant fireball that rose over 1.6 km (1 mi) into the air, forming a large mushroom cloud. The force of the blast triggered a tsunami that reached up to 18 meters above the high-water mark. Imo was lifted up onto the Dartmouth shore by the tsunami.
A 2.5 kmē area of Richmond, Halifax and Dartmouth was levelled and windows were shattered as far away as Truro, 82 km north
Also -The explosion in video would have burnt people at 1000ft, this leveled buildings at 7500ft...
johnnynumfiv
11-23-2006, 09:08 PM
Wasn't the 1000ft thing about the first explosion in the video?
The_Canuck
11-23-2006, 09:17 PM
Wasn't the 1000ft thing about the first explosion in the video?
oops yeah, someone look up guiness records or something...
whiteballz
11-23-2006, 09:44 PM
Rocket fuel.
And vindesh, if that explosion in the video happened in a town, it would prolly be worse than the halifax boom.
The first fire is Propane (30,000 gallons), second explosion (once the crew had retreated) was Isol Butane(50,000 gallons).
The PEPCON explosion (third) Its armonium perchlorate, which is a key ingrediant in rocket fuel.
drakkie
11-24-2006, 12:16 AM
How about the Krakatau blast ? That blew away an entire island !!!!
blackcat77
11-24-2006, 12:28 AM
Texas City was worse...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_City_Disaster
17 million pounds of ammonium nitrate blew up and killed almost 600 people.
blackcat77
11-24-2006, 12:30 AM
How about the Krakatau blast ? That blew away an entire island !!!!
Well yeah, but I don't think natural disasters fall into this category...
Zytek_Fan
11-24-2006, 01:46 AM
How about the Krakatau blast ? That blew away an entire island !!!!
Mt St Helens eruption was pretty powerful too. Took out over 200 sq mi of trees and 1000 feet off the mountain top ;)
Timothy (in VA)
11-27-2006, 04:42 PM
As long as we're including natural events, then the Tunguska event bears mentioning. The Tunguska explosion was most likely caused by a small asteroid entering the atmosphere at a shallow angle, heating up and vaporizing over eastern Russia. It leveled an area of Siberian forest the size of a large city; it was only sheer luck it didn't hit where anyone actually lived.