A shaped atomic weapon charge to stop tsunami

cosmictraveler

cosmictraveler

Be kind to yourself always.
Valued Senior Member
Could they design a atomic shaped weapon that could be discharged in the front of an oncoming tsunami that would create a counter tsunami to cancel the effects of the first one? They could drop this device in time if they could get it there by fighter jet .
 
It would have to be the same frequency and power, but 180 degrees out of phase. With all of the other variables, it sounds like it would be hard to accomplish in such a short amount of time.
 
MacGyver1968 said:
It would have to be the same frequency and power, but 180 degrees out of phase. With all of the other variables, it sounds like it would be hard to accomplish in such a short amount of time.
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But they could design and make it before the tsunami hits but since we don't know where that would be there would have to be enough of these devices made to be engaged anywhere in the world where tsunamis are bound to happen. I'd think 15 would be enough but they would need a fighter jet capable of delivering this as well. So many nations would have to have one on hand if they can design such a thing.
 
Dywyddyr said:
How do you know what to make until the tsunami is formed?
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Yeah...that's kinda the point I was trying to make. You would need to know so much information about the incoming wave before you could "tune" the device to create a "counter wave"...i.e. the frequency and speed of the wave, it's amplitude, and the depth of the water in which the device would be detonated for starters. Plus..considering the amount of energy contained in a tidal wave, I wonder if we even have a device capable of creating a wave of equal power.
 
We could get my ex-wife to give it one of her stern looks. That usually stopped me doing whatever I was doing.
 
Ever heard of Project Seal?


Project Seal ( also known as the Tsunami bomb) was a programme by the New Zealand military to develop a weapon that could create destructive tsunamis. This weapon was tested in Whangaparaoa off the coast of Auckland between 1944-1945. The experiments were conducted by Professor Thomas Leech. British and US defence chiefs were eager to see it developed and it was considered as important as the atomic bomb. It was expected to cause massive damage to coastal cities; it could have even been used with a nuclear charge. The weapon was only tested using small explosions and never on a full scale. After 4000 test explosions over a seven-month period, none of which generated an appreciable tsunami, the project was closed down when it was determined that there were errors in the theoretical basis of the plan.

Wiki
 
After 4000 test explosions over a seven-month period, none of which generated an appreciable tsunami, the project was closed down when it was determined that there were errors in the theoretical basis of the plan.
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Never heard about that before now. Interesting but I'm wondering that with todays technology they could "adjust" to compensate for those errors and since those tests are still available to research theyu could be helpful as well.
 
I think the total energy in a Tsunami would be many Atom Bombs worth.
Not sure.

Perhaps the method could be used to protect a city though.
 
A Tsunami is only a few inches high when out to sea.
Would the explosion need to be at all levels of the wave, or would it do to create a counter wave just at the surface?

One difficulty would be that the circumference of the tsunami, having travelled 100s of miles possibly would be almost straight along the shoreline, whereas the circumference of the explosion wave would be very circular.

You would really need an explosion along the length of the shoreline you wanted to protect. A very long bomb?
 
Releasing more energy into a tsunami would not help. The direction and force of the water is not something that can be tackled. Also how can you direct the force of a nuclear bomb in one direction?

One bomb could possibly help protect a city by vaporising a lot of a wave, but more water would rush in to fill the void. We are talking about a lot of water.

Even if some kind of beneficial force could be applied, the fallout over the area you wish to protect, and the possibility of radioactive materials being washed over the land by the wave, consign this idea to the loony bin (no offense intended cosmic).

Also where and how do you test this theory? Only in computer simulation. Too risky to contemplate an actual application of this.
 
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To counter the tsunami, you would have to create a series of very long waves.
The Tsunamis start with a tall wave that spreads out into a series of long waves.

tsunami-formation.gif


To counter it, you would have to simulate an earthquake, directing the outgoing wave in a specific direction, and somehow matching the almost straight circumference of the approaching wave.
I think it's impossible.
Good question though.
 
Captain Kremmen said:
To counter the tsunami, you would have to create a series of very long waves.
The Tsunamis start with a tall wave that spreads out into a series of long waves.


To counter it, you would have to simulate an earthquake, directing the outgoing wave in a specific direction, and somehow matching the almost straight circumference of the approaching wave.
I think it's impossible.
Good question though.
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So a hydrogen weapon wouldn't simulate an earhquake? They make very powerful ones today like up to 50 killotons and more.
 
Captain Kremmen said:
To counter the tsunami, you would have to create a series of very long waves.
The Tsunamis start with a tall wave that spreads out into a series of long waves.

tsunami-formation.gif


To counter it, you would have to simulate an earthquake, directing the outgoing wave in a specific direction, and somehow matching the almost straight circumference of the approaching wave.
I think it's impossible.
Good question though.
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And this has actually happened before? Or is this idle speculation?
 
cosmictraveler said:
So a hydrogen weapon wouldn't simulate an earhquake? They make very powerful ones today like up to 50 killotons and more.
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You mean megatons, and an average earthquake can have dozens, neigh hundreds of megatons of force. Remember, those tectonic plates are tremendous.
 
cosmictraveler said:
So a hydrogen weapon wouldn't simulate an earhquake? They make very powerful ones today like up to 50 killotons and more.
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A tsunami is caused by a shift in the crust of the earth. You can't simulate this with a bomb. The energy required to lift say 500 miles of crust upwards by a few metres is immense. Anyway, a tsunami ripples outward from an epicentre in all directions? Any simulation of this would cause another tsunami which would be impossible to direct?
 
universaldistress said:
A tsunami is caused by a shift in the crust of the earth. You can't simulate this with a bomb. The energy required to lift say 500 miles of crust upwards by a few metres is immense. Anyway, a tsunami ripples outward from an epicentre in all directions? Any simulation of this would cause another tsunami which would be impossible to direct?
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Plus, we know from the very basics of radio frequencies that unless you create an earthquake with the exact same frequency yet is out of phase then it will only create a second tsunami.
 
This technique, if possible, would only result in two tsunamis instead of one. Twice the devastation.

To deal with a tsunami, you build very tall and very strong sea walls, or get the hell out of its path!
 
Skeptical said:
This technique, if possible, would only result in two tsunamis instead of one. Twice the devastation.

To deal with a tsunami, you build very tall and very strong sea walls, or get the hell out of its path!
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Not at all . The one that the hydrogen weapon makes is much closer to shore to begin with and it would be a SHAPED charge which directs the water in one direction as best possible. Just like with any shaped charge the power all goes in one direction for the most part.
 
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