ping
Brett Baier on Fox News reporting that White House calls the test "more fizz than pop," indicating that the test underperformed based on seismic readings.
According to multiple MSM sources, WH had previously anticipated that any test would be in the range of Little Boy (12-15kt).
Based on these tidbits, the 550t report might be roughly accurate.
If so, this would match the success of their July 4 missile test. I wonder what their Iranian customers thought of these product demos?
Just some data points for comparison:
The major conventional explosion on board the Russian submarine Kursk back in 2000 measured a 4.2 http://geology.about.com/library/weekly/aa012801a.htm
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2001/01/010122094229.htm
Likewise, a 4.0 is about what the sonic boom from the Space Shuttle's re-entry makes: http://www.ig.utexas.edu/outreach/cataclysms/earthquakes/key/AnswerEq3.pdf
Here's a natural gas explosion seismogram for comparison: http://dutchman.nmt.edu/Geop/Pipeline/pipeline.html
Fox TV News just reported the 500Ton Report.
Seems small. Maybe it fizzled.
Sounds like a fizzle or they just detonated a lot of conventional explosives to calibrate their equipment.
Hmmm... Sounds like a fizzle. The deviced described by the Russians should have had a much greater yield.
Any thoughts on Mr. Roh's next move? Is it possible that the Roh government did not know about this test before the fact?
Pick a location you are familiar with, and try .55 kT, 4 kT, 20 kT, 400 kT, which are all numbers I've seen thrown about on various news sites tonight.
Half a kT isn't much on the scale of a nuclear explosion. I'd point out, though, they may have learned a lot even from a relative dud.
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