BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF BLAST

Abstract

The current state of knowledge relevant to biological blast effects is summarized. Primary, secondary, tertiary, and miscellaneous blast effects are defined, and interspecies experimental data, useful in estimating human response, are presented. Tentative biological criteria defining safe levels of exposure are set forth as are survival curves for different conditions of exposure in Hiroshima. Comparative variations in range of the ''free-field'' effects as they vary with explosive yield are discussed. The fundamental requirement for surviving seconds, minutes, and hours to abet survival for days, weeks, months, and years is emphasized along with the necessity for planning protective measures against all hazardous weapons effects as one attractive alternative for minimizing casualties and maximizing survival in the event of nuclear war. (Author)

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Dec 01, 1961
Accession Number
AD0276892

Entities

People

  • Clayton S. White

Organizations

  • Lovelace Foundation

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Abdomen
  • Accidents
  • Air Force
  • Biological Sciences
  • Casualties
  • Explosions
  • Explosives
  • Fluid Flow
  • Health Services
  • Medical Personnel
  • National Security
  • New Mexico
  • Nuclear Weapons
  • Rodents
  • Systems Engineering
  • United States
  • Weapons Effects

Readers

  • Explosive Engineering.
  • Immunology
  • Theoretical Analysis.