How loud is a nuclear bomb explosion?

Question

Here are few things:

What's the closest that I can be without getting fried and how loud would at that point, would it be?

How far can the sound be heard from its initial point?

Just curious...

Answer 1

If you're near a decently-sized hydrogen bomb, according to this nifty decibel chart,

http://www.makeitlouder.com/Decibel%20Level%20Chart.txt

the bomb can produce an overpressure corresponding to 278 decibels. This is QUITE lethal. 200 decibels is enough to cause instant death, and 278 decibels is about 10 million times greater sound intensity.

My guess is that there will be several regions of lethality around a nuclear bomb blast:

1. Very near the bomb, you will simply be vaporized instantly.
2. Somewhat further away, you will get dramatically irradiated, and almost simultaneously blown to pieces by the pressure wave.
3. Further still, there will be enough time delay between the radiation and pressure wave that you will be cooked thoroughly before the pressure blows you apart (like in Terminator 2).
4. Still further out, the pressure wave will be diminished in strength enough to allow you to survive, but the radiation dose will kill you a couple hours after the exposure. Your eardrums might explode, though.
5. Due to radioactive fallout, the danger zone for radiation poisoning will extend far beyond the zone in which the pressure wave would kill you.

Answer 2

Nuclear Explosion Sound

Answer 3

Well,

It sort of depends on how close you want to stand to it.

Sound is a pressure wave so diminishes at around 1/x^2 - the real question is, does the neutron/gamma flux diminish faster or slower than the sound wave pressure.

Put another way, can you be close enough to hear it without being fried :)

Answer 4

I do not know and do not plan to find out any time soon in order to answer your question.

Answer 5

It depends

Answer 6

very loud for both our own good

Answer 7

more that loud enough to burst our eardrums