Explosion crater

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Crater created by the Sedan shallow underground nuclear test explosion Sedan Plowshare Crater.jpg
Crater created by the Sedan shallow underground nuclear test explosion
A flooded crater produced by the 2020 Beirut explosion. In a large explosion like this, the energy may not only cause destruction like that shown in the picture, but eject large amounts of material from the ground, creating a hole in the earth. Damages after 2020 Beirut explosions 1.jpg
A flooded crater produced by the 2020 Beirut explosion. In a large explosion like this, the energy may not only cause destruction like that shown in the picture, but eject large amounts of material from the ground, creating a hole in the earth.

An explosion crater is a type of crater formed when material is ejected from the surface of the ground by an explosion at or immediately above or below the surface.

Contents

Stylised cross-section of a crater formed by a below-ground explosion. Stylised crater.png
Stylised cross-section of a crater formed by a below-ground explosion.

A crater is formed by an explosion through the displacement and ejection of material from the ground. It is typically bowl-shaped. High-pressure gas and shock waves cause three processes responsible for the creation of the crater:

Two processes partially fill the crater back in:

The relative importance of the five processes varies, depending on the height above or depth below the ground surface at which the explosion occurs and on the composition of the ground.

Examples

One of the largest explosion craters in Germany is in the borough of Prüm. It was caused by a huge explosion in 1949, in which an ammunition depot exploded due to unknown causes and large parts of the town were destroyed. [2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ P. W. Cooper. Explosives Engineering. Wiley-VCH. ISBN   0-471-18636-8
  2. ↑ "Landesarchivverwaltung: 15.07.0". 3 December 2013. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013.
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