Exploding trees can occur when they're struck by lightning [1], [2]. The strong electric current is carried mostly by the water-conducting sapwood below the bark, heating it up and boiling the water. The pressure of the steam can make the trunk burst. In Australia, the native eucalyptus trees are also known to explode during bush fires due to the high flammability of vapourised eucalyptus oil produced by the tree naturally. [3] [4] This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Electric current is the flow (movement) of electric charge. ... Trunks A tree trunk as found at the Veluwe, The Netherlands Wood is a solid material derived from woody plants, notably trees but also shrubs. ... For other meanings of bark, see Bark (disambiguation). ... natural range Species About 700; see the List of Eucalyptus species Eucalyptus (From Greek, ευκάλυπτος = Well covered) is a diverse genus of trees (and a few shrubs), the members of which dominate the tree flora of Australia. ... natural range Species About 700; see the List of Eucalyptus species Eucalyptus (From Greek, ευκάλυπτος = Well covered) is a diverse genus of trees (and a few shrubs), the members of which dominate the tree flora of Australia. ... Backburning in Townsville, Australia. ...

Fictional tree explosions were the subject of a 2005 April Fools' Day hoax covered by National Public Radio, stating that maple trees in New England had been exploding due to a failure to collect their sap, causing pressure to build from the inside. [5] April Fools Day or All Fools Day, though not a holiday in its own right, is a notable day celebrated in many countries on April 1. ... “NPR” redirects here. ... Distribution Species See List of Acer species Maples are trees or shrubs in the genus Acer. ... This article is about the region in the United States of America. ...

Exploding trees in fiction

• In Larry Niven's fictional setting of Known Space, an alien race called the Tnuctipun used genetic engineering to create the stage tree, a tree which produces solid rocket fuel. Stage trees spread their seeds only when they are ignited.
• The Integral Trees and The Smoke Ring, also by Niven, feature enormous inhabited trees in orbit around a neutron star. The tidal force keeps them under strong tension, and if they drift out of the habitable zone of the gas ring, they split in half with explosive force, sacrificing one half of the tree to save the other half.
• In the book Brian's Winter by Gary Paulsen the main character believes he is hearing gunshots, and walks toward them, and finds out that sound is made by exploding trees.
• In the Super Nintendo video game, EarthBound, there is an enemy in the Peaceful Rest Valley called the Territorial Oak which explodes when defeated and causes a great deal of damage to party members.
• The fictional Tesla trees supposedly let off gigantic blasts of lightning in order to secure fertilizer, similar in some ways to an explosion.
• In Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein", Victor is inspired to pursue a life of science when he observes an oak exploding in a thunderstorm. (literally exploding, leaving the tree in thin ribbons of wood.)
• In Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series, trees in the northern countries commonly explode by freezing, due to the extreme cold.

This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Known Space is the fictional setting of several science fiction novels and short stories written by author Larry Niven. ... The Tnuctipun are a fictional alien species in Larry Nivens Known Space series. ... An iconic image of genetic engineering; this autoluminograph from 1986 of a glowing transgenic tobacco plant bearing the luciferase gene, illustrating the possibilities of genetic engineering. ... The Space Shuttle is initially launched with the help of solid-fuel boosters A Solid rocket or a solid fuel rocket is a rocket with a motor that uses solid propellants (fuel/oxidizer). ... The Integral Trees is a 1984 science fiction novel by Larry Niven (first published as a serial in Analog in 1983). ... The Smoke Ring is a 1987 science fiction novel by Larry Niven. ... A neutron star is one of the few possible endpoints of stellar evolution. ... Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 after breaking up under the influence of Jupiters tidal forces. ... Brians Winter is the 1996 sequel to Gary Paulsens young adult novel Hatchet. ... Gary Paulsen is an American writer, who writes many young adult coming of age stories about the wilderness. ... The Super Nintendo Entertainment System, also known as Super Nintendo, Super NES or SNES, is a 16-bit video game console released by Nintendo in North America, Brazil, Europe, and Australia. ... EarthBound, released in Japan as MOTHER 2: Gyiyg no Gyakushū , lit. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin Shelley (30 August 1797 – 1 February 1851) was an English romantic/gothic novelist and the author of Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus. ... This article is about the 1818 novel. ...

See also

• Lightning

This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ...

References

• April Fool's: New England Suffers Maple Woes