Explosion
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2008-07-11T03:31:08Z
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{{redirect|Explode|the Nelly Furtado song|Explode (song)}}
{{redirect|Explosions|the Texas post-rock band|Explosions in the Sky}}
{{for|the logical''' principle|Principle of explosion}}
[[Image:Explosions.jpg|right|thumb|250px|[[Gasoline]] explosions, simulating [[bomb]] drops at an [[airshow]].]]
[[Image:F1000016.JPG|thumb|250px|right|Black smoke from an explosion rising after a bomb goes off outside the road beside [[Nahr al-Bared]]]]
[[Image:IED Controlled Explosion.jpg|thumb|150px|Detonation of a [[MICLIC]] to destroy a 1km in depth blast resistant minefield in [[Iraq]].]]
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 [[gas]]es. An explosion creates a [[shock wave]].
==Types of explosives==
===Natural===
Explosions do not commonly occur in nature. Below Earth, most natural explosions arise from [[volcano|volcanic]] processes of various sorts. 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. Explosions also occur as a result of [[impact event]]s. On other planets, [[volcanoes]] and impacts cause explosions with various frequency.
===Chemical===
{{main|Explosive material}}
The most common artificial [[Explosive material|explosives]] are [[chemical]] explosives, usually involving a rapid and violent [[oxidation]] reaction that produces large amounts of hot gas. [[Gunpowder]] was the first explosive to be discovered and put to use. 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]].
===Nuclear===
{{main|Effects of nuclear explosions}}
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. 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 [[electric arc|electrical arc]] which rapidly vaporizes metal and insulation material. Also, excessive [[magnetic pressure]] within an ultra-strong [[electromagnet]] can cause a ''magnetic explosion''.
===Vapour===
[[BLEVE|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.
===Astronomical===
[[Solar flare]]s are an example of explosion common on the [[Sun]], and presumably on most other [[star]]s as well. 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 (physics)|plasma]].
===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. 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 [[supernova]]e, which result from stars exploding, and [[gamma ray burst]]s, whose nature is still in some dispute.
== Notable explosions ==
{{see|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
*[[Fauld_Explosion|RAF Fauld explosion]] 1944
*[[Texas City Disaster]] 1947
*[[Nedelin catastrophe]] 1960
*Soviet [[N1_rocket#Launch_history|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===
*[[Trinity test]]
*[[Castle Bravo]]
*[[Tsar Bomba]]
===Use in war===
*Atomic bombings of [[Hiroshima]] and [[Nagasaki, Nagasaki|Nagasaki]]
===Exploding volcanoes===
*[[Santorini]]
*[[Krakatoa]]
*[[Mount St. Helens]]
*[[Mount Tambora]]
*[[Mount Pinatubo]]
*[[Yellowstone Caldera]]
==See also==
* [[Dust explosion]]
* [[Explosive limit]]
* [[Implosion (mechanical process)]]
* [[Underwater explosion]]
* [[Mushroom cloud]]
[[Category:Hazards]]
[[Category:Explosions]]
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