Can we see nuclear explosion from orbit?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the visibility of nuclear explosions from orbit or space, exploring whether such events can be observed from low Earth orbit (LEO) or beyond. Participants consider various aspects including the size and brightness of nuclear explosions compared to other visible phenomena, as well as the conditions necessary for observation.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants suggest that nuclear explosions are significantly larger and brighter than manmade structures, making them potentially visible from space.
  • Others argue that while a nuclear explosion might be visible, the actual visible energy from the explosion may not be easily seen from space due to distance and atmospheric absorption.
  • There are claims that an airburst nuclear explosion could be visible from the Moon, indicating the potential visibility of large-scale explosions.
  • Some participants mention that the average nuclear bomb's yield varies, with discussions on the differences between megaton and kiloton yields and their implications for visibility.
  • Concerns are raised about the conditions required for visibility, such as knowing when and where to look, and the limitations of the human eye's resolution from orbit.
  • One participant notes that while a nuclear explosion is very bright, much of the visual energy may be absorbed before it leaves the atmosphere, questioning the visibility of ground explosions compared to high-altitude nuclear events.
  • There are references to other bright phenomena, such as lightning and satellite flares, as points of comparison for the brightness of a nuclear explosion.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

The discussion contains multiple competing views regarding the visibility of nuclear explosions from orbit. While some participants assert that it is possible to see such explosions, others express skepticism about the conditions under which they would be visible, leading to an unresolved debate.

Contextual Notes

Participants mention various assumptions regarding the visibility of nuclear explosions, including the effects of atmospheric absorption and the limitations of human vision from orbit. The discussion also touches on the variability in nuclear weapon yields and the implications for visibility.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be of interest to those exploring the visibility of astronomical and terrestrial phenomena from space, as well as individuals curious about the characteristics and implications of nuclear explosions.

Chitose
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As topic says

Can we see Nuclear Explosion form orbit altitued? or even form space?

Just curious.
 
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You can see manmade buildings from space. A nuclear explosion is certainly bigger and brighter than any manmade building. We can also see nuclear explosions in space quite easily; see:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starfish_Prime
 
ideasrule said:
You can see manmade buildings from space. A nuclear explosion is certainly bigger and brighter than any manmade building. We can also see nuclear explosions in space quite easily; see:

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

Errr, which buildings exactly? As well you more than likely would not be able to see the actually explosion (as in the visible energy coming out) from space. Our average nuclear bombs aren't really 'that' powerful. You might be able to see just the first few moments of the explosion if you knew where to look and were given good conditions but it wouldn't last too long and would probably just look like a 'bright' point. Space is quite a distance. The average nuclear bomb however would have no problem pushing a mushroom cloud through and over most clouds. The problem is knowing what and where/when to look for it.

Unless the OP means by the aided eye, in which case everything is visible
 
Last edited:
Assuming by "space" the OP just means low Earth orbit, a nuclear explosion is orders of magnitude larger than what is necessary to see with the unaided eye. From LEO, you can see a large campfire! Or consider it from the other direction: you can see most satellites with the naked eye from the ground. They are much, much dimmer than a nuclear explosion as they are merely reflecting light from the sun. Then, certain satellites with flat, reflective surfaces will "flare", reflecting direct sunlight to a small area on earth. These are spectaclarly bright to the naked eye - much brighter than any star or planet. http://www.satobs.org/iridium.html
 
zomgwtf said:
Errr, which buildings exactly?
Some links I've seen put the human eye's resolution at 0.6 arcmin: http://clarkvision.com/imagedetail/eye-resolution.html

The ISS is at an altitude of 173 miles, so at that resolution, the unaided human eye can resolve an object 159 feet wide. There are individual buildings larger than that.

You can probably see an airburst nuke on Earth from the Moon.
 
Bright as the sun.
 
I sincerely hope we never see one from space.
 
russ_watters said:
Assuming by "space" the OP just means low Earth orbit, a nuclear explosion is orders of magnitude larger than what is necessary to see with the unaided eye. From LEO, you can see a large campfire! Or consider it from the other direction: you can see most satellites with the naked eye from the ground. They are much, much dimmer than a nuclear explosion as they are merely reflecting light from the sun. Then, certain satellites with flat, reflective surfaces will "flare", reflecting direct sunlight to a small area on earth. These are spectaclarly bright to the naked eye - much brighter than any star or planet. http://www.satobs.org/iridium.html



I had an Iridium flare happen to me just last week. I was using my finder scope to get set up on M42 and this big flash happened. Scared the poo out of me!
 
I've seen a couple unexpectedly, but assumed I knew what they were and was just upset I didn't have a camera ready. You can jump onto www.heavensabove.com to confirm what you just saw.
 
  • #10
russ_watters said:
You can probably see an airburst nuke on Earth from the Moon.

Funnily enough, I was just thinking the very same thing yesterday, as I was reading about the largest bomb ever made by humans, a 57 megaton hydrogen bomb that the Russians detonated over Novaja Zelmlja in 1961. (LINK)
 
  • #11
Max Faust said:
Funnily enough, I was just thinking the very same thing yesterday, as I was reading about the largest bomb ever made by humans, a 57 megaton hydrogen bomb that the Russians detonated over Novaja Zelmlja in 1961. (LINK)

The average nuclear weapon is far from this size, lol. I think in America they are on average 100-300kT. In Russia they go up to 500kT.
 
  • #12
zomgwtf said:
The average nuclear weapon is far from this size, lol. I think in America they are on average 100-300kT. In Russia they go up to 500kT.

"Average"? Maybe, but megaton yield is not unusual.

Here's an interesting link: http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Usa/Weapons/Allbombs.html
 
  • #13
pallidin said:
"Average"? Maybe, but megaton yield is not unusual.

Here's an interesting link: http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Usa/Weapons/Allbombs.html

I guess I should have said the average active weapon to make it clearer what I was saying. Yes there was a time period where people thought that making powerful weapons was the best and so big weapons exist. Most are not active though, majority are retired and recycled for other weapons.

Something we have to think about with this is that a lot of released visual wavelength energy gets absorbed before leaving the atmosphere. A HANE would definitely be visible but a ground explosion, I'm not sure... it'd probably just be a really quick flash which would be obscured quickly
 
  • #14
Chitose said:
As topic says

Can we see Nuclear Explosion form orbit altitued? or even form space?

Just curious.

Absolutely.
 
  • #15
Max Faust said:
Funnily enough, I was just thinking the very same thing yesterday, as I was reading about the largest bomb ever made by humans, a 57 megaton hydrogen bomb that the Russians detonated over Novaja Zelmlja in 1961.

It all depends what you are looking with... If you are using your eyes, distance is finite... If you are using an gamma ray/xray telescope pointed in the right spot... you could see one from light years away.
 
  • #16
You can easily see lightning from orbit, which it is much less brightness and duration than a nuclear explosion.
 
  • #17
zomgwtf said:
Something we have to think about with this is that a lot of released visual wavelength energy gets absorbed before leaving the atmosphere. A HANE would definitely be visible but a ground explosion, I'm not sure... it'd probably just be a really quick flash which would be obscured quickly

Not that much. A nuke is VERY bright, MUCH brighter than you think it is. The flash, fireball, and resulting cloud would very easily be seen from orbit.
 
  • #18
I vaguely remember reading somewhere that the only thing you can see from space is the Great Wall of China. However, I don't think this is right because China is on the other side of the earth. Maybe they mean at night. Anyway, here is a website that might help.
A nuclear explosion as seen from space.
 

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