Anthropogenic degradation of local ecosystems under extreme explosive impacts: Coupled soil geochemical anomalies and aerosol forcing

Abstract

Extreme high-energy impacts on critical infrastructure generate unprecedented spatially coupled environmental anomalies. Traditional approaches to assessing technogenic hazards often consider soil degradation and atmospheric pollution as separate processes, which reduces the effectiveness of spatial planning for emergency response. The aim of this study is to quantitatively assess a coupled two-phase environmental anomaly caused by missile strikes in order to develop strategies for ensuring environmental safety and reducing disaster risk. An integrated two-level design was applied: a macroscale analysis of the acute atmospheric phase, based on Sentinel-5P/ TROPOMI satellite monitoring and SILAM numerical dispersion modeling using 40,000 cores on the PUHTI supercomputer, was combined with targeted microscale profiling of the chronic pedological phase using XRF spectrometry along a high-resolution transect across the epicenter of an X-101 missile crater. It was established that the destruction of infrastructure generates extreme emission pulses, with CO increasing by up to 362.5% and SO₂ by up to 454.8%, as well as aerosol forcing that locally triggers extreme precipitation. At ground level, a persistent geochemical gradient was identified, characterized by local accumulation of potentially toxic elements (e.g., Sr up to 184 mg/kg and Cu with an anthropogenic enrichment factor of 2.6) and a critical shift in acid-base balance toward alkalinity, with pH reaching 7.8. The study demonstrates that highenergy explosions act as a systemic trigger of complex environmental degradation. The proposed methodology provides an objective scientific basis for spatially targeted reclamation and emergency risk management strategies.