# Rings around a nuclear cloud

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rings-around-a-nuclear-cloud/699874>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [September 29, 2014, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rings-around-a-nuclear-cloud/699874 "2014-09-29T16:16:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Shinna\_Minna\_Ma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@Shinna\_Minna\_Ma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shinna_Minna_Ma)\
**Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rings-around-a-nuclear-cloud/699874/1 "2014-09-29T16:16:18Z")

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When I look at videos of nuclear bombs, it looks like there are rings that form in the sky around the mushroom cloud. What are these rings?

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**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\
**Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rings-around-a-nuclear-cloud/699874/2 "2014-09-29T16:26:24Z")

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They are regions of cloud formation; as the blast wave progresses outward, water vapor condenses in the vaccuum that passes through after the high pressure wave.

Multiple rings indicate a ever-lessening pressure:vaccuum:pressure oscillation.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------^-------ooops

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**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\
**Post date:** [September 29, 2014, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rings-around-a-nuclear-cloud/699874/3 "2014-09-29T18:05:26Z")

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And… they’re something that’s probably only visible in the context of a photograph taken in a fraction of a second.

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**Author:** ![cybersnark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b9e5f3/32.png) [@cybersnark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cybersnark)\
**Post date:** [September 30, 2014, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rings-around-a-nuclear-cloud/699874/4 "2014-09-30T01:02:38Z")

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Condensation Rings or “Wilson Clouds”:

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mushroom\_cloud](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mushroom_cloud)

See “Condensation Effects” paragraph in the above wiki.

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**Author:** ![sich\_hinaufwinden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@sich\_hinaufwinden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sich_hinaufwinden)\
**Post date:** [September 30, 2014, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rings-around-a-nuclear-cloud/699874/5 "2014-09-30T01:32:14Z")

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> [@Enola\_Straight](#):
>
> They are regions of cloud formation; as the blast wave progresses outward, water vapor condenses in the vaccuum that passes through after the high pressure wave.
> 
> Multiple rings indicate a ever-lessening pressure:vaccuum:pressure oscillation.
> 
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------^-------ooops

Little known fact: The German plane that dropped the atomic bombs on Pearl Harbor was nicknamed Bering Straight.

So great user name/post combo!

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**Author:** ![Willcross](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b2d939/32.png) [@Willcross](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Willcross)\
**Post date:** [September 30, 2014, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rings-around-a-nuclear-cloud/699874/6 "2014-09-30T05:20:06Z")

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> [@sich\_hinaufwinden](#):
>
> Little known fact: The German plane that dropped the atomic bombs on Pearl Harbor was nicknamed Bering Straight.
> 
> So great user name/post combo!

Too soon. ☹