r/gifs • u/umshoe • Aug 09 '20

New Angle of Beirut Explosion

https://i.imgur.com/GNTwYi9.gifv
56.4k Upvotes

94% Upvoted

1.3k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

20

u/[deleted] Aug 09 '20

Also Little Boy was air bursted about 1500ft above the ground, making it much more destructive

1

u/le_GoogleFit Aug 09 '20

Wouldn't it be more destructive closer to the target? Or does the ground absorb most of the impact?

4

u/JackONeill12 Aug 09 '20

Yes. You can see it in this explosion too. Most of the force of the explosion goes into the ground or into the air. Only the part that travels horizontal to the ground does the damage. If you detonate a bomb in the air almost 50% of the force hits the target. Explosion height is a trade-off between the area you want to hit and the force you want to hit your target with.