What if we gathered every known kilogram of U-235 on Earth into one massive nuclear device and detonated it at the bottom of the Mariana Trench? By comparing total fissile mass, energy release, and Earth’s gravitational binding energy, we’ll show that—even under wildly optimistic assumptions—it wouldn’t come close to shattering our planet!

“Planetary Nuke” in the Mariana Trench: Can It Blow Earth Apart?

1. Thought Experiment Setup

• Location: Mariana Trench, depth 11,034 m
• Analogy: If Earth were scaled to the size of a basketball, the trench would be only 0.2 mm deep—a mere surface dent.
• Key Question: How much U-235 could we actually assemble?

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2. Available U-235 Quantity

1. Proven global uranium reserves: ≈ 8.07 million tonnes
2. U-235 fraction: 0.7 % → ≈ 58,000 t
3. Critical mass per device: 52 kg (beyond that, spontaneous chain reactions occur)
4. Realistic burn‐up: Nuclear weapons typically fission only ~20 % of U-235—100 % fissile yield is physically impossible

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3. Theoretical Energy Yield

• Energy per kg of U-235: 8.2 × 10¹³ J
• Total if 58,000 t fully fissioned:
  5.8 × 10⁷ kg × 8.2 × 10¹³ J/kg ≈ 4.8 × 10²¹ J
• Comparison:
  • Chicxulub impact (dinosaur extinction): ~4.2 × 10²³ J
  • Full U-235 yield ≈ 1 % of Chicxulub energy

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4. Earth’s “Binding Energy” Barrier

• Total uranium in Earth: ~3 × 10¹⁵ t → U-235 ≈ 2 × 10¹³ t
• Maxoretical yield if fully fissioned:
  2 × 10¹⁶ kg × 8.2 × 10¹³ J/kg ≈ 1.6 × 10²⁹ J
  → Equivalent to 380,000 Chicxulub impacts
• Earth’s gravitational binding energy: ~2.24 × 10³² J
• Yield fraction: 1.6 × 10²⁹ J is only 0.07 % of what’s needed to disassemble the planet

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5. Conclusion

1. Energy gap is colossal: Even under idealized, 100 % fission scenarios, available energy is far too small.
2. Limits of nuclear weapons: While devastating on human scales, nukes are powerless to demolish a planet.
3. Scientific takeaway: Earth’s cohesion is astronomically robust—no known explosive can tear it apart.

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