Sudden, violent releases of energy that cause loud sounds and flying debris, usually from chemical reactions like burning fuel or detonating bombs.
From Latin explodere meaning 'to drive off by clapping' or 'to hiss off stage,' from ex- 'out' and plodere 'to clap.' The meaning shifted to describe violent bursts of energy around the 17th century.
The loudest explosion ever recorded was the 1883 Krakatoa volcano eruption—it was so loud it was heard 3,000 miles away in Mauritius, and the sound wave circled Earth multiple times, proving that sound, while slow, travels incredibly far.
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