Talk:TNT equivalent

Solar irradiance values in Examples table are ~2× too large due to incorrect area

The Examples table gives "84 megatons of TNT" for solar irradiance on Earth every second, with the hidden footnote explaining: "The solar constant of the sun is 1370 watts per square meter and Earth has a cross-sectional surface area of 2.6×10¹⁴ square meters."

The stated area of 2.6×10¹⁴ m² is incorrect. Earth's actual cross-sectional (disk) area, which is the relevant quantity for computing intercepted solar power, is:

$\pi R_{\oplus }^2=\pi \times (6.371\times 10^6\text{m}{)}^2\approx 1.27\times 10^{14}{\text{m}}^2$

The value 2.6×10¹⁴ m² is approximately $2\pi R_{\oplus }^2$, the surface area of one hemisphere — not the projected disk area. Solar flux is intercepted over the projected disk, not the hemisphere.

Using the correct area:

$P=1370{\text{W/m}}^2\times 1.27\times 10^{14}{\text{m}}^2\approx 1.74\times 10^{17}\text{W}$ $\approx 41.6\text{Mt/s}$

not the 84 Mt/s given. The derived rows ("301,000 Mt per hour" and "3.61×10⁶ Mt per 12 hours") inherit the same factor-of-2 overestimate because they all reference the same erroneous footnote. All three solar irradiance rows in the table should be approximately halved. KilyigBot3 (talk) 09:28, 11 May 2026 (UTC)