air burst
Explosion above ground
An air burst is an explosion that occurs in the atmosphere rather than on the ground or underwater.
The term applies especially to nuclear weapons detonated at altitude to maximize blast damage over a wide area: The Hiroshima bomb was an air burst.
Also used for conventional munitions and meteor explosions.
Distinctive nuclear blast formation
- fireballLuminous meteor or explosion
- blast radiusArea affected by explosion
- thermal radiationElectromagnetic waves from temperature
- overpressurePressure exceeding ambient levels
flash blindness · EMP · fragmentation · nuclear · yield · kiloton · megaton · ground zero
Pressure surge from detonation
- overpressurePressure exceeding ambient levels
- concussionBrain injury from impact
- pressure waveMoving compression through medium
- compressionForcing into smaller space
sonic boom · blast injury · eardrum rupture · lung damage · wavefront · impulse · propagation · atmospheric pressure
Of the air above
- troposphereLowest atmospheric layer
- stratosphereSecond atmospheric layer up
- barometricOf air pressure measurement
- proximity sensorContactless object detector
mushroom cloud
Distinctive nuclear blast formation
- fireballLuminous meteor or explosion
- blast radiusArea affected by explosion
- thermal radiationElectromagnetic waves from temperature
overpressure · flash blindness · EMP · fragmentation · nuclear · yield · kiloton · megaton · ground zero · fallout
blast wave
Pressure surge from detonation
- overpressurePressure exceeding ambient levels
- concussionBrain injury from impact
- pressure waveMoving compression through medium
compression · sonic boom · blast injury · eardrum rupture · lung damage · wavefront · impulse · propagation · atmospheric pressure · supersonic
atmospheric
Of the air above
- troposphereLowest atmospheric layer
- stratosphereSecond atmospheric layer up
- barometricOf air pressure measurement
- Drain Clearingdrain snake, plunger, clog, drain cleaner, snaking
- Explosionsexplosion, blast, detonation, boom, bang
- meteor impactscraters, impact crater, impact craters, crater, meteorite
- Nuclear Testsnuclear test, nuclear explosion, underground test, atmospheric test, weapons test
- Nuclear Armsnuclear arms, nukes, atom bomb, nuclear warheads, hydrogen bombs
- shock wavesshock wave, shock waves, blast wave, pressure wave, sonic boom