Sedov-Taylor blast

A mathematical framework for calculating the propagation of intense shock waves from point-source explosions in gas.

The Sedov-Taylor solution provides the exact scaling laws for blast wave radius and pressure over time. Developed independently by Leonid Sedov, Geoffrey Taylor, and John von Neumann during the 1940s, this model was famously used to estimate the energy yield of the Trinity nuclear test (approximately 20 kilotons of TNT) using only high-speed photographs. It remains the industry standard for analyzing supernova remnants and high-energy density physics experiments involving laser-driven plasma. The formula relies on a self-similar solution where the shock front position scales with time to the power of 2/5 (0.4), assuming a constant energy input into a uniform medium.

https://nrl.navy.mil/ppd/about/sedov-taylor