examples, sorted by date. An unambiguous ranking in order of severity is not possible; a 1994 study by historian Jay White of 130 large explosions suggested that they need to be ranked by an overall effect of power, quantity, radius, loss of life and property destruction, but concluded that such rankings are difficult to assess.

The weight of an explosive does not correlate directly with the energy or destructive effect of an explosion, as these can depend upon many other factors such as containment, proximity, purity, preheating, and