Overview of Nuclear Weapons
GIF above shows the effect of nuclear blast on a test house
Destructive Potential
Simulation Data Provided by NuclearSecrecy.com
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There are three factors that define the destructive potential.
1. The Weapon that is being used 2. The Population 3. The Population Density The image provided on the left shows a simulation of a nuclear strike on the most populated city on earth: Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo's population is roughly 37.8 million people. The most powerful nuclear weapon designed and tested was the Tsar Bomba (King of Bombs) of the USSR having a yield of 50 Megatons. Perhaps a nuclear strike with the Tsar Bomba was conducted on Tokyo. 1 detonation would result in 13.8 million fatalities, 2 detonations would result in 27.6 million fatalities, and 3 detonations would completely wipe out the population. To put this into perspective, the Holocaust was roughly 12 million people. This why the term "Nuclear Holocaust" was coined. It only takes second for a nuclear weapon to accomplish what the holocaust accomplished in 12 years. |
Nuclear Aftermath
Comparing Nuclear Weapons
The image below compares Hiroshima and the Tsar Bomba. Nuclear weapons have evolved dramatically since WW2. The Hiroshima bomb only had a blast yield of 15kt while the Tsar Bomba had yield of 50mt. It is important to understand the unit system regarding explosives.
TNT is the convention used for the energy released in an explosion
1 kt=1000 tons of tnt
1 megaton=1000 kt of tnt
Tzar Bomba=50mt
Hiroshima=15kt
FOAB (most destructive non-nuclear weapon ever created)=44 tons of tnt