Using a flow simulation, two scientists have identified the best (and worst) places to seek shelter inside a building after a nuclear blast.
Like Fanpage.it by Dr Marco CasolinoDirector of Research at the National Institute of Nuclear Physics (INFN) and science popularizer when a atomic bomb from 50 megatons – like the infamous Russian “Tsar” – was blasted across the middle Rome The area inside the Grande Raccordo Anulare would be completely swept away while the damage inflicted by theshock wave as far as Civitavecchia in the north and as far as Latina in the south, a catastrophe of apocalyptic proportions million deaddue to one of weapons of mass destruction deadliest born of the human mind.
To be able to survive the explosion of a ballistic missile armed with a nuclear warheadobviously has a lot to do with distance from the crash site, but that’s not all. In the example above, anyone inside the ring road would be vaporized (unless taking cover in a nuclear bomb shelter), while for those just outside the zone of maximum destruction there may be hope, but they need to protect themselves in the right way. A new scientific study has determined just that: what they are to avoid and to prefer locations within a building in the area “moderate destruction” following theExplosion of an atomic bomb.
The study was sophisticatedly carried out by the two scientists Ioannis W. Kokkinakis and Dimitris Drikakis from the University of Nicosia (Cyprus). computer simulations with fluid dynamic models to determine the best and worst places to take shelter within a building. It must be emphasized that the research has not assessed the (extremely serious) consequences radiationbut focused on that shock waves and on the air speed afteratomic explosionso strong that they lift people like leaves in the wind, causing very serious – and potentially fatal – injuries when they fall to the ground or hit walls and objects.
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Scientists explain that the air velocity after the shock wave – defined as a significant change in pressure, density, speed and other parameters of a Fluid – Accelerates even more when reaching into a building. “The supersonic shock waves resulting from the explosion expand when entering a room through an opening, leading to channeling effects,” the authors point out in the abstract of the study. In the simulation, Kokkinakis and Drikakis calculated that the maximum air velocities are the same outdoors due to the shock wave 46 and 73 meters per second (m/s) at 3 and 5 psi (pounds per square inch) from overpressurewhile the maximum speeds within a building are respectively 140 and 184 meters m/s.
This means that not all locations within the building (strong enough to stand) in the moderate destruction zone are equally safe. The simulation, based on the explosion of a 750 kiloton nuclear bomb launched from an intercontinental ballistic missile such as the RS-28 Sarmat (Satan II) has actually found that under the worst conditions, when air flows through confined spaces and reflects off walls, the shock wave can produce an equivalent force to 18 times the weight of a human (different g-acceleration forces) that would be flung extremely violently if hit by the airflow. So what to do to protect yourself in the event of an imminent nuclear missile strike?
As stated in a press release by Professor Kokkinakis, the critical locations to avoid at all costs are the corridorsthe window and the doors, where the airflow suddenly accelerates and overwhelms everything in its path. The ideal place to seek shelter is a Room without windows or at least one Wall that it is far enough away from any vulnerable elements. Even the Corners of a wall facing the explosion They can protect us from the deadly current of the shock wave. In the case of the atomic bomb used in the simulation, the shock wave has a calculated radius of 4.6 kilometers and people have seconds from the moment of detonation to find cover. One could imagine a situation where a warning of an imminent nuclear explosion arrives on the phone (or over the news), advising that one seek immediate refuge. In times like these, no one would likely know what to do, so the researchers wanted to fill that gap. After all, we live in an “explosive” international geopolitical context and the nuclear threat is much greater than in the past.
The maximum velocity of the air in a room a few seconds after the shock wave has passed through the window. Photo credits: I. Kokkinakis and D. Drikakis, University of Nicosia, Cyprus
The researchers hope, of course, that their advice will never have to be put into practice, but it is undoubtedly useful information to know. The authors of the study specify that there is of course something to fear after a nuclear explosion radiationthe risk of Fire and gods Damage to electricity and gas lines. This virtual reality video shows what happens on a beach after a nuclear bomb explodes. The details of the study “Nuclear explosion impact on human indoors” were published in the scientific journal Physics of Fluids.