atomic explosion

There are charged particles traveling from the cloud to ground, basically like lightning, in addition there are a variety of electromagnetic fields that organize the dust kicked up in the explosion. Is this what you are talking about?

in the picture you can clearly see vertical lines going up on the left. on the right there are none,

Jeez those pictures always make me shiver.

I always thought they were smoke trails from small rockets to produce a visible record of wind direction, shock wave propagation etc.

Regards CEKM

Hi CEKM,

I have amorbid fascination with atching programs about this kind of thing. My understanding is that you are correct, the smoke trails from rockets were used to visualize the shock waves produced by the explosions.

IPG

That`s great picture........hoorrooor too

I'll be interested to hear some of the other opinions, but my Dad had this picture on his wall for years (he was involved with the south pacific testing), and he told me that was associted with charged particles traveling between the cloud and the ground... If you look at daylight photos you don't see this, it is only in these filtered photos that you see it.

The "vertical stripes" are plasma pulses which last only for a very short time.

For some pictures of early stages of an atomic explosion see:

Rapatronic Nuclear Photographs

http://www.damninteresting.com/?p=456

Those photos show the initiation of plasma "strikes", taken during the first nanoseconds of an atomic explosion.

The reason the plasma strikes appear only on one side of the colour photo above (ex Steve S.), is that the plasma pulse, like lightning, travels somewhere to discharge.

Either wind or the fireball convection/shock wave, in the area at time of Steve S. photo, could cause the drift as shown.

are you speaking about this photo?

http://www.abomb1.org/images/ableb.jpg

as I understand it they were sounding rockets used to measure the hight and speed of the expansion.

joshua

Ok. Thanks..

Hi joshua,

Have you seen this article about the rope trick effect?

I don't see how it could apply in the photo link that you posted.

-John

"Photographs of atomic tests often show numerous vertical rope-like lines to one side. These are typically created by small sounding rockets launched a few seconds before the firing, leaving smoke trails. The purpose of these trails is to record the passing of the now invisible shock wave, which causes an obvious visual effect on the smoke by compressing the air into a lens. This is not necessarily related to the rope trick effect in any physical way, although it is possible to use vertical cables heated by the rope trick in place of the rockets. It is possible to confuse the two in some photographs."

I think this answers the question better than I ever could.

amazing picture awe inspiring

thank you Johnjohn for pointing it out in your link.

joshua

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rope_trick_effect

this was the link.

joshua

In most of the atomic detonations, especially those done in the U.S., small rockets were fired up beside and around the predicted detonation cloud to study atmospheric forces caused by the blasts. In this way, the force of displaced air and bomb blast forces could be calculated.