answersLogoWhite

0


Best Answer

A mushroom cloud is a distinctive pyrocumulus mushroom-shaped cloud of condensed water vapor or debris resulting from a very large explosion. They are most commonly associated with nuclear explosions, but any sufficiently large blast will produce the same sort of effect. Mushroom clouds are formed by many sorts of large explosions under earth gravity, though they are best known for their appearance after nuclear detonations.

Inside a mushroom cloud: cooler air is drawn into the rising toroidal fireball, which itself cools into the familiar cloud appearance.

User Avatar

Wiki User

14y ago
This answer is:
User Avatar

Add your answer:

Earn +20 pts
Q: Why do large explosions form into mushroom clouds?
Write your answer...
Submit
Still have questions?
magnify glass
imp
Related questions

Why does a mushroom cloud form after a nuclear bomb explosion?

Gravity if forming the clouds from the atomic bomb.


What is the name of the cloud that covers large areas and form in layers?

Stratus Clouds are clouds that cover large areas and form in layers.


Do clouds always lead to rain?

Dust or sand can also form clouds, which are sometimes seen in the desert. Explosions can form clouds of smoke. In terms of weather, yes, all clouds are composed of water vapor.


Why do nuclear bombs form mushroom clouds in physical terms?

The force of the explosion pushes the air out from around it, creating a pocket of low air pressure. As the smoke and debris cloud begins rising, fresh air flows in from outside the area of explosion, forcing the cloud higher and forming the shape of a mushroom. This can happen with any sufficiently powerful explosion, but it's most well known and most well associated with nuclear explosions.


How does a mushroom cloud work?

A mushroom cloud is a distinctive mushroom-shaped cloud of condensed water vapor or debris resulting from a very large explosion. They are most commonly associated with nuclear explosions, but any sufficiently large blast will produce the same sort of effect. They can be caused by powerful conventional weapons. Volcano eruptions and impact events can produce natural mushroom clouds. Mushroom clouds form as a result of the sudden formation of a large mass of hot, low-density gases near the ground creating a Rayleigh-Taylor instability, an instability of an interface between two fluids of different densities, which occurs when the lighter fluid is pushing the heavier fluid. The mass of gas rises rapidly, resulting in turbulent vortices curling downward around its edges and drawing up a column of additional smoke and debris in the center to form its "stem". The mass of gas eventually reaches an altitude where it is no longer of lower density than the surrounding air and disperses, the debris drawn upward from the ground scattering and drifting back down. Mushroom clouds are formed by many sorts of large explosions under earth gravity, though they are best known for their appearance after nuclear detonations. In space the explosion would be somewhat spherical. Nuclear weapons are usually detonated above the ground (not upon impact, because most of the energy would be dispelled into the ground) in order to maximize the effect of their spherical expanding fireball. After immediate detonation, the fireball itself begins to rise into the air, acting on the same principle as a hot-air balloon. One way to analyze the motion, once the hot gas has cleared the ground sufficiently, is as a "spherical cap bubble", as this gives agreement between the rate of rise and observed diameter. While it rises, air is drawn into it and upwards (similar to the updraft of a chimney), producing strong air currents known as "afterwinds", while inside the head of the cloud the hot gases rotate in a toroid shape. When the detonation itself is low enough, these afterwinds will draw in dirt and debris from the ground below to form the stem of the mushroom cloud. Nuclear mushroom clouds are often also accompanied by short-lived vapor clouds, "Wilson condensation clouds," also known as vapor rings. These are created by the blast wave causing a sudden drop in the surrounding air temperatures, causing water vapor in the air to condense around the explosion cloud. Detonations produced high above the ground do not create mushroom clouds. The heads of the clouds themselves consist of highly-radioactive particles and other fission products, and usually are dispersed by the wind, though weather patterns (especially rain) can produce problematic nuclear fallout. Detonations below ground level or deep below the water (for instance, nuclear depth charges) also do not produce mushroom clouds, as the explosion causes the vaporization of a huge amount of earth and water in these instances. Detonations underwater but near the surface can produce mushroom clouds, however.


How does altostratus clouds form?

Altostratus clouds are formed when a large stable air mass is lifts causing water vapor to condense into a cloud.


Storms that form within large cumulonimbus clouds and produce rain and lightning are called?

thunderstorms


Where is the spores located on a mushroom?

The form under the top of the mushroom.


Do clouds form from sublimation?

No, clouds form by condensation.


What form is the water in when it is in the clouds?

Water in clouds is in gaseous form.


Wall clouds can range from a fraction of what?

Wall clouds can form from cumulonimbus clouds that often form tornadoes.


What kinds of clouds form thunderstorms?

Cumulonimbus clouds form thunderstorms.