Pakistan Truck Bomb -- WHO DID THIS?

Originally posted by neformore
It depends on the type of strata below the point of explosion as to whether a crater will be left behind.

I think you'll find that the mythbusters detonation was carried out in an old quarry, which means that the blast wave would be reflected up off the rock bed beneath, and as such may not leave a crater.

Road ways are constructed out of layers of asphalt, each having a different purpose with regard to the performance of the road, and although bituminous or concrete roads are strong, if the sub-strata they are laid on is weak and any services/conduits/sewers lie beneath the point of explosion the chances are that the compression caused by the detonation will cause them to shear, crack and blow apart, causing a crater.

Why does it take a mod like neformore above (and subsequent posts and images from other members) to point out the obvious to our resident group of non-expert experts? You should all be ashamed of yourselves for "knowing" that a truck bomb "couldn't possibly cause a crater".

I for one tire of the pseudo scientists who posts pictures like the OK bombing and say.. "hey.. see, no crater in this picture" while totally ignoring the debris that would be filling the crater itself. Pictures do NOT tell the story. It's posting images like with the accompanying comments that make you IGNORANT.

As neformore points out, ground conditions are different, bomb materials are different, even the delivery and detonations are different. So it stands to reason that while one truck bomb might not leave a crater.. another would.

It's one thing to fret over a conspiracy that the US was behind it, thats plausible, but to espouse scientific knowledge that you dont have makes you look extremely ignorant and unreliable.

For those believing a truck bomb "couldn't possibly cause a crater", please take a look in the mirror today and repeat 1000 times:

"I am not an explosives expert and my reasoning, scientific and physics knowledge equate to the equivilent of road runner cartoons"

One more thing for the mass of ignorant wondering what the "device" might be?.. If you had a big crater (and oh yea.. half a building blown to bits) wouldn't you.. in today's day an age, check for radiation? Just to be sure it was a regular harmless ol' truck bomb...

I guess checking for that and just having the device automatically equals an american CIA agent dropping a mini nuke bunker buster from a stealth jet above the chemical contrails of evil.

************

To those who have just been proven wrong on the "truck bomb couldn't possibly cause a crater" issue.

ask yourself this.. if you are proven wrong so easily and so quickly on what you "KNOW" to be the absolute truth..


what else are you wrong on?

Just something for the "US did it" crew to play with:

Pakistanis say suspected US drone shot down

Pakistan's army said later that troops recovered the wreckage of an unmanned spy plane near the Afghan border.

U.S. officials dispute Pakistan drone crash report

A U.S. defense official also said no Defense Department drones were missing

A drone unaccounted for? Hmmm.

also
Taliban denies role in attackl

"We are collecting evidence. The explosives were similar to those used in the Danish embassy, which was claimed by al-Qaeda, and the attack on the ISI (Inter Services Intelligence) camp in Rawalpindi last year," the official said. An al-Qaeda leader claimed responsibility for the attack on the Danish embassy, but no group said it had targeted the ISI facility.

[edit on 24-9-2008 by beaverg]

YES! TRUCK BOMBS CAN CAUSE CRATERS!!!

Cratering is highly dependent upon the size, position, surrounding
enclosure of the explosives and the type, density and volatility
of any packing material in addition to general soil and surrounding
target conditions.

In some cases, explosions can be magnified by staging them
so as to break up initial surrounds and then detonating multiple
secondary explosives to finish the job. This can be accomplished
merely by using delay lines or cheap detonators that don't
activate all at the same time so as to cause a staging effect.

Initial enclosures can be designed to direct the explosive forces
such as those used in shaped charges and packing material can also
be added to slow down the explosion so that more destructive forces
can be built up within the enclosure(s).

Other types of explosions can be designed on purpose OR created
by accident (i.e. terrorists just happened to pack the explosives
and any fuel drums just in the right way) to aerosolize fuel
and air mixtures (i.e. Google FAE or Fuel Air Explosive or
Thermobaric Explosive) to create a massive persussive effect
which WOULD cause the type of cratering we see in the photos.

I suspect that after the investigators have done their job
we will see TWO possibilities for the bombing:

1) The explosive was simply very powerful and much more destructive
that those used in the oft-quoted cement truck episode of Mythbusters.
A ton or two of Semtex would DEFINITELY make a VERY BIG HOLE!

...or...

2) The truck contained a volatile combination of primary explosive
along with simple drums of petroleum fuel, Ammonium Nitrate and
Diesel Fuel or other aerosolizing component that would, by accident or
by design, cause a fuel/air explosion with a masssive and
destructive percussive effect.

I suggest that people should be MUCH MORE discriminating about offering
and accepting conspiratorial exlanations for very bad events and actually
READ their physics textbooks for some extended education on runaway
or cascading chemical reactions which is what a convential explosion
really is!

Look at all the bombings - Bali, Madrid, 911, London. Who stands to gain? In all cases it is the US and its allies. Look in slow frame for mega velocity missile from sky. Project Thor.

high explosives like c4 are highly brisant, meaning they shatter and reach extreme pressures quickly, so c4 would create a much bigger crater than, say, the explosives used in the Oklahoma city bombing, the ammunium nitrate. It's brisant quality is one reason the military now uses it more than TNT.



notice how in the Islamabad explosion, there's a huge crater, but not as much lateral damage to the buildings, whereas in the Oklahoma bombing, the air pressure blasted away the entire building. that's a good illustration of what 'brisant' means. It's super-powerful, but not as large a radius of blast, it doesn't last as long.



but damn, that's still one big crater.

reply to post by u2r2h


I've seen that movie, truth can be sooo clear, guess car bombs don't leave crater after all....