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The visual effects of a high-altitude or space-based explosion may last longer than atmospheric tests, sometimes in excess of 30 minutes. Heat from the Bluegill Triple Prime shot, at an altitude of 50 kilometers (31 miles), was felt by personnel on the ground at Johnston Atoll , and this test caused retina burns to two personnel at ground zero ...
Many ballistic missiles reach hypersonic speeds (i.e. Mach 5 and above) when they re-enter the atmosphere from space. However, in common military terminology, the term "hypersonic ballistic missile" is generally only given to those that can be maneuvered before hitting their target and don't follow a simple ballistic trajectory. [22] [23]
Since the E1 component of nuclear EMP depends on the prompt gamma-ray output, which was only 0.1% of yield in Starfish Prime but can be 0.5% of yield in low-yield pure nuclear fission weapons, a 10 kt (42 TJ) bomb can easily be 5 * 8%= 40% as powerful as the 1.44 Mt (6.0 PJ) Starfish Prime at producing EMP.
A collimation factor of nearly 0.5 can be achieved by matching the diameter of the pusher plate to the diameter of the nuclear fireball created by the explosion of a nuclear pulse unit. The smaller the bomb, the smaller each impulse will be, so the higher the rate of impulses and more than will be needed to achieve orbit.
The effects of a nuclear explosion on its immediate vicinity are typically much more destructive and multifaceted than those caused by conventional explosives. In most cases, the energy released from a nuclear weapon detonated within the lower atmosphere can be approximately divided into four basic categories: [1]
Bomb disposal personnel from the Japanese Ground Self Defense Force determined that the explosion was caused by an American 500-pound bomb that was likely dropped during a World War II air raid.
The table above only lists those high-altitude nuclear explosions for which a reference exists in the open (unclassified) English-language scientific literature to persistent artificial radiation belts resulting from the explosion.
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