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There’s something incredibly captivating about witnessing the raw, destructive beauty of explosions. It’s a common feature in nearly every action movie, where a dramatic explosion is often a highlight. But in reality, there have been many explosive events, some far surpassing even the most intense movie moments. Below is a quick rundown of the largest and most powerful explosions ever recorded by humanity.
10. FOAB
Type: The largest explosion ever produced by a non-nuclear weapon
FOAB (Father of All Bombs) is a Russian-made tactical weapon designed to explode in mid-air, sending a devastating shockwave to the target zone below. With the force equivalent to 44 tons of TNT, it rivals some of the smallest nuclear bombs ever created. However, unlike nuclear weapons, FOAB does not produce radioactive fallout. It is part of a ‘mini-arms race’ between the United States and Russia. In 2003, the U.S. unveiled MOAB (Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb), a similar bomb yielding 11 tons of TNT, earning the nickname 'Mother of All Bombs.' In response, Russia developed FOAB in 2007, claiming it is four times more powerful and lighter. The U.S. military, however, remains skeptical of these claims, suggesting that the video footage of the test may have been doctored and that some of the bomb’s characteristics were exaggerated for propaganda purposes.
9. Minor Scale
Type: Largest man-made conventional explosion
Minor Scale was a test conducted by the United States on June 27, 1985. The U.S. Defense Nuclear Agency set off nearly 5,000 tons of ammonium nitrate fuel oil to simulate the effects of a small nuclear weapon. The primary goal was to study how such a weapon would impact military equipment. In one of the images from the test, an F-4 Phantom can be seen in the aftermath of the blast. An interesting point of contention: there is debate over whether this explosion truly was the largest conventional blast. The Heligoland explosion, carried out by the U.K. Royal Navy when 6,700 tons of leftover WWII arsenal were detonated, is recorded as being larger by the Guinness Book of Records. However, Minor Scale’s yield was roughly half a kiloton of TNT greater than Heligoland’s.
8. Tunguska Event
Type: The largest impact event in recorded history
On June 30, 1908, a massive explosion occurred above the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in Russia. The blast was estimated to have a yield of 10-15 megatons of TNT, which is about 1,000 times more powerful than the atomic bomb that leveled Hiroshima, Japan. While numerous conspiracy theories surround the cause of the explosion, most scientists believe it was the result of a meteoroid bursting mid-air. Although the meteoroid exploded in the atmosphere, it’s still considered an impact event. Despite several attempts to find it, no crater has ever been discovered. However, there was a vast area of approximately 2,150 square kilometers where trees were knocked down away from the center of the blast.
7. Tsar Bomba
Type: The largest explosion ever caused by human hands
Tsar Bomba, a hydrogen bomb developed by the Soviet Union, was detonated on October 30, 1961. With a staggering yield of 57 megatons, it remains the most powerful explosion ever created by humans. Originally, the bomb was designed to yield around 100 megatons, but the fallout from such a massive blast would have been too hazardous. Although Tsar Bomba was tested in the remote Novaya Zemlya islands off the coast of Russia, it still caused significant collateral damage. A village located 55 km from the test site was obliterated, and damage to structures was recorded as far away as Norway and Finland. The explosion produced a mushroom cloud that soared 64 km into the sky and generated a shockwave that was detectable by sensors as it circled the Earth three times.
6. Mount Tambora Eruption
Type: The most powerful explosion ever recorded on Earth
On April 5, 1815, Mount Tambora erupted in Sumbawa, Indonesia, creating the most powerful explosion ever observed by humans in recorded history. The eruption is believed to have released the equivalent of 800 megatons of TNT, making it roughly 14 times stronger than Tsar Bomba. The eruption was so loud that it could be heard from as far as Sumatra, 2,600 kilometers away. Prior to the eruption, Mount Tambora stood 4.3 km tall; after the explosion, it was reduced to 2.85 km. The blast created an ash plume that reached 43 km in height and spread ash around the globe, which blocked sunlight and caused 1816 to become the second coldest year on record. This resulted in crop failures and famines across Europe and North America. Around 10,000 people perished directly from the eruption, while an estimated 70,000 people died due to the resulting climate changes.
5. Cretaceous-Tertiary Extinction Event
Type: The largest known Earth-based explosion
Approximately 65 million years ago, the Cretaceous-Tertiary Event led to the extinction of numerous species, most notably the dinosaurs. It is widely believed that an asteroid impact, which formed the Chicxulub Crater off the Yucatán Peninsula, was the cause. This impact is estimated to have released the energy equivalent to 96 teratons of TNT, roughly 1.7 million Tsar Bombas. This makes it the largest explosion ever to occur on Earth, and geological evidence supports this theory. The impact is thought to have triggered a dramatic climate shift, similar to the eruption of Mt. Tambora but far more catastrophic, leading to the extinction of the dinosaurs.
4. GRB 080319B
Type: The largest explosion ever directly observed by humans
Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are some of the most powerful and violent phenomena known in the universe. While the exact cause of these bursts remains uncertain, many astronomers believe they are linked to massive supernovae. GRBs typically last between 20 and 40 seconds, releasing intense gamma-rays in a narrow direction. These events are extraordinarily rare, occurring once every few hundred thousand years per galaxy. On March 19, 2008, a GRB named GRB 080319B was visible to the naked eye for about 30 seconds. This explosion, located 7.5 billion light-years away, is the most distant object ever seen without a telescope. It is estimated that this explosion released the equivalent energy of 2×10^34 tons of TNT, roughly 10,000 times the Sun’s mass in TNT detonating simultaneously.
3. Big Bang
Type: The largest "explosion" ever
It’s fitting that the Big Bang ranks as number one, but it’s important to clarify that it wasn’t exactly an explosion in the traditional sense. An explosion involves matter moving through space from high pressure to low pressure at an extremely rapid pace. In contrast, the Big Bang saw space itself rapidly expanding, rather than matter expanding within space. Since the universe is still expanding today, it could be argued that the Big Bang is an ongoing event. Another common misconception is that the Big Bang Theory explains how the universe began or how matter and energy first came into existence. It actually only describes how space began to expand roughly 5.4×10^-44 seconds after the universe’s inception.
2. GRB 080916C
Type: Largest true explosion ever
The universe is vast, and comprehending the scale of its most extreme events is challenging. GRB 080916C, the largest known true explosion, is a prime example. This gamma-ray burst, recorded on September 16, 2008, occurred about 12.2 billion light-years away. Lasting for 23 minutes, it was unusually long for a gamma-ray burst. During that time, the burst emitted more energy than most galaxy superclusters. The energy from this event is estimated to be the equivalent of 2×10^38 tons of TNT—roughly equivalent to a trillion Tsar Bombas detonating every second for 110 billion years. In terms of magnitude, it released about 7,000 times the total energy expected from the Sun over its entire lifespan.
1. SN2006gy
Type: Largest known supernova
On September 16, 2006, SN2006gy, the largest supernova ever recorded, was discovered. Supernovae are the explosive deaths of stars, occurring when they run out of fuel, collapse, and then explode. Some supernovae, referred to as hypernovae, are much larger and more violent, often linked to gamma-ray bursts. SN2006gy, located 230 million light-years away, was the result of a star approximately 150 times the mass of the Sun collapsing. The energy released by this hypernova is estimated at around 2.5×10^35 tons of TNT, equivalent to the total energy output of all stars in the Virgo Supercluster for a single minute. An interesting fact is that after the explosion, the remaining material of these massive stars can continue collapsing until it forms a black hole, as its volume reduces to zero.
