Posted on 07/06/2019 7:20:48 PM PDT by Morgana
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Authorities say a family of four, including two children, are in the hospital after a major car fire that was sparked by a road rage shooting in north Harris County.
The incident happened Thursday around 9:30 p.m. in the 1800 block of W. Mount Houston.
Authorities say the father got into some sort of argument with the suspect. That suspect pulled out a gun, and the father tried to drive off.
The gunman shot at the car, which set off fireworks in the vehicle, causing it to catch fire, deputies say.
"Family had bought fireworks. It is believed gunfire struck the fireworks causing them to ignite," Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said.
Dramatic video shows flames overtaking the car.
And new surveillance video from a nearby gas station captured the moment the fireworks exploded.
(Excerpt) Read more at abc13.com ...
Yep, remember the old cap guns?
A lot of the 7.62 NATO ball ammo had copper-washed steel jackets or mild steel cores.
If you ever shoot at night into gravel, you will see a shower of sparks.
Impact causes heat. That is just plain old ordinary run-of-the-mill physics.
It also causes a shock wave, which triggers detonation. There are explosives that you can actually set fire to and burn without triggering an explosion....it specifically requires a shock wave to be set off.
In this instance, shock wave is the more likely explanation.
Might of hit a bag of those popper things that explode when you drop them on the ground. That might have started off the other stuff.
Have you ever noticed the illuminated white sphere that expands from a high explosive detonation? That is the shock wave in the air; and, the air is heated white hot like the filament of a light bulb.
It is all about the heat. I have set off dynamite with a flashbulb.
Physics & chemistry are really certain about this.
Try this: Get a block of hardwood and a large nail. Pound the nail into the wood with a hammer. When the nail sticks about 1/2 inch from the surface of the wood, stop hammering and immediately feel the heal of the nail. (It will burn you.) Impact (shock) converted to heat.
If it has a steel core and it’s 7.62mm NATO, it’s AP, not ball.
The Russian PS 7.62 X39 M43 has a steel core.
PhD Chemist here. Both heat and shock wave are the result of molecular motion, but they differ significantly in properties. It's all about "energy of activation" of the molecule that is being triggered to release its stored energy.
Glad you are here. It is always good to learn/refresh the good stuff. Thank you.
There are some nasty molecules out there. A few chemists always want to push the envelope and synthesize outrageously dangerous stuff just to say “I did it”.
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