Physics question

[Saruke]

I really had no idea where to put this so I decided to put it here,

I was just wondering if shockwaves travel through space.

Like you know how if a bomb is detonated on earth it sends a shockwave that doesn't consist of anything but pure kinetic energy. But I was thinking that in space there's no atmosphere for that kinetic energy to move through they wouldn't happen right?

I trust that one of you has the answer.

 

[kineaesth]

Nope, no matter for the energy to be transferred through.

 

[Saruke]

I thought so!

Huzzah! This is good news!

 

[taviow]

Good news for the world!

 

[Dan]

But that means that all of the energy will still be contained in the material of the bomb. The shrapnel and gas it puts out will never slow down, and if you summed it up, it has the same energy as the shock wave

 

[Saruke]

it slows down because it takes energy to move through matter so it ends eventually.

 

[AtomicSpark]

In space... everybody needs bigger bombs.

 

[kineaesth]

it slows down because it takes energy to move through matter so it ends eventually.

Except we're in space, so no matter.

However, it would change due to gravity of planets, asteroids, etc.

 

[Saruke]

I thought Dan was talking about setting a bomb of on a planet.

 

[Narvi]

Shockwaves can't propagate through vacuum. No medium. What you would see from a distance is extremely attenuated radiation and particles and shit like that. Look up the square cube law.

The material of the bomb will not have the same energy as a shockwave because energy will be lost as light which would otherwise have formed the shockwave, natch.

 

[Dan]

Shockwaves can't propagate through vacuum. No medium. What you would see from a distance is extremely attenuated radiation and particles and shit like that. Look up the square cube law.

The material of the bomb will not have the same energy as a shockwave because energy will be lost as light which would otherwise have formed the shockwave, natch/

How would light form a shock wave on earth? Air is transparent to any type of radiation you could expect from an explosion.

 

[dream431ca]

That depends really.. If the object exploded in space created it's own particles, then the shockwave would have a way to propagate.

 

[jverne]

wha?


if a bomb exploded in space there would be only the radiation which couldn't be exactly defined as a shock wave and shrapnel of the shell due to the large energy output of the fissile material. at least thats what i think.

for proof look at the recent event where china shot an orbiting satellite, uppon destruction it left alot of flying debris.

 

[Narvi]

How would light form a shock wave on earth? Air is transparent to any type of radiation you could expect from an explosion.

That was a simplification. Some energy will be absorbed by the air and turned into thermal energy even if light does pass through it, due to the intensity. Anyway, the energy in the particles will not be equal to the shockwave, since a certain percentage of energy was lost.

That depends really.. If the object exploded in space created it's own particles, then the shockwave would have a way to propagate.

Yes, my point is it would not be equal to a shockwave generated in atmosphere.

 

[soulslicer]

Basically all that they said, the explosion itself will provide the kinetic energy for the particles to explode outwards. A shockwave, mainly consisting of the gas particles from the large explosion will be formed and will continue to propagate on because in space there is no atmospheric friction, but the intensity of the force will drop through distance.

Not really related, but here is a cool article on high-altitude nuclear explosions. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_altitude_nuclear_explosion

 

[NeptuneUK]

As a physics student this thread amuses me.
That is all, continue.

 

[Terminator]

Except we're in space, so no matter.

However, it would change due to gravity of planets, asteroids, etc.

Space isn't a complete hard vacuum, whilst it may seem very very empty compared to the earths atomosphere (a few particles per cm3 for example) over long periods of time a piece of matter would encounter deep space particles, gasses etc.

Also, in range of the sun there is the effect from solar wind particles.

But as far as our timescales, observations and current speeds we have attained in space it's not of much relevance to the calculation.

 

[Wleikko]

This question is rather pointless as Earth will be destroyed before the space era...

 

[Narvi]

As a physics student this thread amuses me.
That is all, continue.

I was trying to explain with my (extremely) limited understanding of the matter. Mind telling me what bits I got wrong, mate?

 

[Combine_Advisor]

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Lizardizzle]

maybe the bomb would just implode. Making a mini-blackhole...
or the shrapnal and gas would float out into space, eventually getting drawn into a planet, and burning up or creating a meteor. Is the explosion in just the vacuum of eptey space, with no gravitational force of asteroids/planets?

What if you set off a firecracker in a space shuttle? would it just float there burning of it's fuel?

This is THE most mind-boggling thread I've seen here so far...

 

[Raziaar]

It would explode. Space shuttles have oxygen for the passengers so a firecracker would probably behave much the same...

but I don't know, I don't know anything about physics.

 

[Sulkdodds]

Next week: Quantum Mechanics Question

 

[theotherguy]

I really had no idea where to put this so I decided to put it here,

I was just wondering if shockwaves travel through space.

Like you know how if a bomb is detonated on earth it sends a shockwave that doesn't consist of anything but pure kinetic energy. But I was thinking that in space there's no atmosphere for that kinetic energy to move through they wouldn't happen right?

I trust that one of you has the answer.

No.

The contents of the bomb could be considered a shockwave though, because the shell of the bomb and whatever was inside will go flying off into space.

It would also produce alot of light and heat.

 

[theotherguy]

it slows down because it takes energy to move through matter so it ends eventually.

Eventually, yes, because it will encounter matter along the way.

In a perfect vacuum though, all other things considered, the contents of the bomb would continue through space forever.

 

[theotherguy]

This question is rather pointless as Earth will be destroyed before the space era...

I guess Earth got destroyed before 1957 eh?

 

[Acepilotf14]

Doesn't that also mean that, in space-sim video games, if a spaceship explodes and there's no oxygen for the fire that's created to feed on, there would be no fire? Just electrical explosion?

 

[Saruke]

the fire is the atmosphere inside the ship igniting

 

[theotherguy]

Doesn't that also mean that, in space-sim video games, if a spaceship explodes and there's no oxygen for the fire that's created to feed on, there would be no fire? Just electrical explosion?

Exactly. There should be no fire in space. There would be a slight amount of fire in the ship just before the oxygen escapes and dissipates, but there shouldn't be any burning flames coming out of the ship unless its a burning gas like hydrogen.

 

[theotherguy]

the fire is the atmosphere inside the ship igniting

Atmospheric gasses can't ignite. Burning is simply oxygen combining violently with other atoms and compounds. Granted, everything inside the ship that is flammable would burn when heat and the oxygen inside the ship combined, but after the atmospheric gasses escaped, the fire would be snuffed out.

 

[Dan]

I imagine that the effect would be superheated steel globs, like fireworks.

 

[Sulkdodds]

Globs is such a wonderful word.

 

[L3N!N]

No.

 

[Que-Ever]

Why don't you just try it for yourself. Lazy bastard.