Blog Action Day: What Would Happen If a Nuclear War Breaks Out?
October 15, 2007
This post was written for Blog Action Day. A day when bloggers from all around the world unite to raise awareness for the environment. My topic for this post is not a conventional environmental issue, but a look at a more destructive trend that’ll destroy our environment as well as our existence.
Astronauts tell us that when they soar far higher than the last layer of earth’s atmosphere, they see the earth as a tiny dot, among countless other dots, that looks as though it would fade into the vastness of the cosmos anytime. Our religious, national, and tribal loyalties look so frivolous when the boundaries and belief systems that separate us lose significance. At the same time, the protection and comfort of our little home seems more important than anything else in the cold and dark cosmos.
We, who walk on earth, however, could care less about how to conduct ourselves on the earth to protect the future of our species. Looks like we have everything in place to wipe out the human species. We are only a few clicks away from the doomsday. What other conclusion can you derive from our obsession with building nuclear bombs?
What would happen in case nuclear war breaks out?
You don’t have to go very far to learn what would transpire after a nuclear war breakout. Let’s rewind the time to the moment when USA dropped nuclear bombs on Japan in the World War II. It was devastating. Nothing like this was seen by the humanity before. We truly proved that we were following the path to annihilation.
The bombs, that were called blockbusters, were filled with two million tons of TNT, and they destroyed the whole cities. People were roasted alive and building were flattened in the blast waves.
One little girl who survived the attack recounted her experience:
Through a darkness like the bottom of hell, I could hear the voices of the other students calling for their mothers. And at the base of the bridge, inside a big cistern that had been dug out there, was a mother weeping, holding above her head a naked baby that was burned red all over its body. And another mother was crying and sobbing as she gave her burned breast to her baby. In the cistern the students stood with only their heads above the water, and their two hands, which they clasped as they imploringly cried and screamed, calling for their parents. But every single person who passed was wounded, all of them, and there was no one, there was no one to turn to for help. And the singed hair on the heads of the people was frizzled and whitish and covered with dust. They did not appear to be human, not creatures of this world.
Later, in 1954, a thermonuclear test at Bikini in the Marshal Islands went wrong and emitted huge doses of radioactive waves. Since it wasn’t an explosion, not many deaths occurred. But among those who took in the radioactive ash fallout, developed thyroid abnormalities, growth retardation or malignant tumors
It’s important to note that the bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima contained thirteen kilotons of TNT, and the Bikini test yield was 15 megatons. Wonder how much more destructive the nukes have gotten now?
Considering the numbers of countries that are equipped with nukes, in case a nuclear world war breaks out, the destruction of humanity is inevitable. If there are any survivors, they’ll have to face unlivable circumstances. A full-blown nuclear war will destroy the nitrogen, that will destroy the ozone in the upper atmosphere, resulting in increased solar ultraviolet radiation. The increased radiation will destroy crops, kill microorganisms, and.. you get the drift.
So, even though environmental issues like ozone depletion and energy consumption are slowly eating away our chances to survive, a nuclear war would come as a big blow, out of nowhere, and catch us off guard. We’ll cease to exist just as the big and mighty dinosaurs did millions of years ago.
It’s time to look at our planet from an astronaut’s vantage point, and value the cozy lap of mother earth. What use are the advancements of modern civilization if we can’t overcome our primal urge to destroy the things we hate? Why don’t we realize that we have reached the point where completely destroying our enemies can result in the obliteration of the whole human species?
Thanks to Cosmos by Carl Sagan for information about the nuclear bombs.
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Wonderful post, Mohsin. When reading over several other posts on Blog Action Day, nuclear weapons never crossed my mind. This is a great point to bring up, especially when talking about the environment.
I was actually in Japan a few weeks ago. While flying there, I wondered how the Japanese people react to Americans in their country because of WWII. It turned out to be the best trip of my life. I have never been greeted more kindly than I was there. I don’t imagine this will be the case if we have another nuclear war.
Big weapons aren’t a threat anymore – the Internet is. If some hacker had enough determination they could very easily cripple an entire country and no one would even know what was going on.
Yes Justin, I’ve also heard that Japanese are very hospitable people. I don’t think they remember the enmity with US in the WW2 era, because currently they are one of the biggest allies of US.
Jeremy, hacking may be a threat for some countries, but it doesn’t endanger the lives of millions of people.
This sounds like a great cause, if I would have known about it I would have joined in.
war is bad and stuff and it kills people which is bad how can it ever be justified why dont we all just come together and end this madness? as humans we must get over our instinct to kill whoever stands in our way.
Hate to be a nitpicker, but the blockbuster was more along the lines of six tons. I don’t think an airplane could lift two million tons. Still, good article. Here’s an intersting one as well to consider: http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/04/regional-nuclea.html
Talks about how even a “small” nuclear conflict (India vs. Pakistan) would have dramatic effects on the whole world.
why would someone would wont to erase life only one person can do this god
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To be honest, Humanity deserves to be annihilated. Look up the definition of the word ‘Virus’, and compare it to the human race. You’ll be surprised to notice the similarities. We adapt, consume, reproduce, cause suffering, try to survive by instinct, and destroy and move on. That’s all the human race is. But most people are too selfish to notice anything even remotely related to the subject. Some day something will happen, and the human race will be reduced to rubble.
I agree with Jeremy Steele in that hacking can be a very dangerous threat to the human race, especially with the terrorists roaming in the world like the Al-Qaieda. They are our biggest threat since they will do everything possible to acquire nuclear weapons. If they do, we are all doomed since they are insane enough to use them. Billy Strickland,
I disagree with you that ONLY God can destroy life on Earth. The human race has nukes, remember?? In the movie series of “Left Behind,” Satan had the power to save life on Earth, just like God and Jesus can. If all the nukes in the world were to be used, this planet would be a total wasteland and life as we know it WILL cease to exist. Virtually nothing can survive the radiation. The only creatures that will be able to survive a nuclear war are INSECTS. They will be the dominant species of the earth. Cockroaches are very resistant to nuclear radiation as so are some other insects.
I have always feared nuclear war and have had several dreams about it. The last ones were about not being to be with my fiancee when it does happen. One of the nightmares I had, there was a cure for the nuclear radiation, but it was only an experiment and I was the first volunteer. It was unlike any substance we have in this world. It was like ooze and slimy, not what we would drink if we had a choice. LOL Since I was going to die, I didn’t see what the harm could be by drinking it. Drinking it was a risk I took since I could die from it and it did not matter since I would die anyway.
If we had a nuclear war, suicide is the only solution since we would die anyway. That is the only time that suicide is a good thing. It does not matter if you are Christian, Jew, Muslim, or any religion. I know in Christianity, they preach that if you commit suicide, you will go to Hell. Well, that’s what nuclear war is: mass suicide on a much grander scale. If we have a nuclear war, I want to have sex with the love of my life at ground zero!!
This way, I can die very blissfully. 
Couple of corrections.
The atomic bombs dropped during WWII were not filled with ‘two million tons of TNT”. No plane on earth could lift that much weight. Instead, the bombs had that much explosive power which was released through nuclear fission.
Next, astronauts have never traveled far enough to make the Earth appear to be the same in size as other “dots” and therefore indistiguishable. The furthest mankind has traveled is to the moon and the Earth looms quite large from that distance. Nothing else can even be mistaken for the Earth at that distance. This is hyperbole.
During the height of the Cold War, the US and the Soviet Union had several nuclear weapons in the 20 megaton range, but most were much smaller, around 1.3 megatons. These of course were hydrogen bombs which are much more destructive than the ones used in WWII which were atomic bombs.
Since the late 80’s however, most atomic weapons available to the US and the Russian Federation, are much smaller weapons in the multi kiloton range. Very destructive, but not nearly as much as they were twenty years ago.
The problem today is that many of the atomic weapons built and in the hands of countries such as Pakistan, China and India are very dirty and would cause greater disbursement of radioactive fallout (alpha, beta and gamma radiation).
However, the most dangerous effects for people from a nuclear war are not the environmental ones. After the initial blasts, it is the loss of infrastructure, of injuries, starvation and illnesses which will kill far more. Research has shown while most radiation will reach normal levels after a few weeks, the loss of power, water, food distribution and access to medical facilities and technology will cause far more casualties.
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what would happen to those nuclear bunkers and nuclear subway stuff ?
would it be anything like Fallout 3 ?
if anyone survives they should give them cockroach genes to survive the radiation if they dont allow them in those bunkers and then put alot of water purifiers around the world so people can drink and eat radiated cows lol
Thank u very much for the information!
None of you know the first damn thing about nuclear warfare or the true effects of it. You really prove this this blog that the irony of the information age is that is gives new credibility to uniformed opinion.
Weapons today rarely get larger than 2Mt. This is not because anyone is worried about the environment or you friggin bicycle path, the idea is to use smaller weapons on a ToT plan that will overlap the largest area of destruction. It is similar to the prorogation of sound waves, the further you want a single speaker to be heard the more power you have to feed it. But there is a ceiling to the power vs area of affect. So you have ot place another speaker to cover a larger area.
The 53Mt Tsar Bomba (RDS-220) couldn’t have destroyed all of New York or Los Angeles, or even Chicago because of this propagation problem. Therefore instead on one HUGE bombs, 20 smaller devices would be used, leading th the MIRV concept.
Before you spout off, LEAR THEN MATERIAL!!!
i dont understand why people dont just get it trrough there heads that we have enough to worry about right now, but aslo having to worry about a nuke war…..Unbelievable
I think humanity is destened to destroy itself with our retarted world leaders. We need women to rule the world because they won’t throw bombs at eachother, they would sit and chat with eachother about problems. Statisticly, women are more calmer during sutuations such as (nuclear wars and such). So fuck all you men and women are better!
Cody, you must be saying it to yourself since you are a guy as well!! LOL
Quantum Singularity, don’t make me laugh!! LOL I know what the effects of a nuclear war are. I have seen the movie “The Day After” with my adoptive mother in 1983 when it first came out. That was the very first time I knew about nuclear weapons. She had told me that the effects of a nuclear war would be a lot worse than what was shown in the movie. Like I had said before, the only creatures that would survive a nuclear war are the insects.
But, I learned something new as well that may allow the human race continue on after a nuclear war. There is a chemical that prevent radiation sickness and other illnesses that fallout would cause. That chemical is what we use in table salt and it is called potassium iodide. So, if you eat radiated food or water and you have potassium iodide, you may be safe from the radiation sickness and fallout. So, we will need to use iodized salt on all our foods after a nuclear war and we would be able to live life like nuclear had not happened.
vietganer45 the effects shown in “The Day After” are only a small part of what would happen after an all-out attack. No film, TV show, or book has really shown the world after a nuclear war. Your information on iodized salt is only half right, nothing can help you if you took a large dose of radiation. That information is normally included in quack Nuclear War Survival Skills book and pamphlets that are written by people that are not interested in helping you in any area, other than helping them selves to your money.
The highest level of radioactive particles would decay within 12-16 days of the war, but until then, any living thing would receive a lethal or near-lethal dose depending on where it was and the places attacked and configuration of the weapons. Clean weapons (those with a lead tamper) would not have as long lasting effects at those in a dirty/salted (weapons with a uranium tamper) surrounding the pits. If the bad guys hit with all clean weapons, it could be as little as 10 days before the radiation levels dropped to less than lethal levels, but if dirty/salted weapons are used, it could be as long as 30-40 days.
Anyone that actually believes that nuclear war is an impossibility it a total moron. Bosser is apparently one of these people, what would anything you are worried about matter after the bombs fall? Let me guess you think the end of the Myan Long Count Calendar is more worrisome than the estimated 38,000+ thermonuclear weapons in the world today.
Like I said learn the material before you spout off. No not Wikipedia, go to your local library (remember those places?) and read “The Effects of Nuclear Weapons” (Glasstone and Dolan 1977) and take the time to understand it.
Like I said, Quantum Singularity, my adoptive mother told me that it was only a small part of what could happen in an all-out nuclear war. That is true that no film, TV show, or book has really shown the world after a nuclear war. Actually, I stumbled across it somehow and in the article online, it said that the people who went through the nuclear disaster in the former USSR took potassium iodide and it helped them from getting radiation sickness. You may be right that they may be saying it to make money since that is all this world is all about nowadays, unfortunately. We all need money to survive.
Oh wow, I never knew about the “dirty” and “clean” weapons before. That is very interesting to know.
I agree that anyone who thinks nuclear war is an impossibility is a moron, but as long as we have nuclear weapons, that is. If we never had them, then anyone could say that nuclear war is an impossibility. Very funny. I partly do not believe in the Mayan doomsday thing at all, but part of me does. I do not know why.
I am also one of those who is very fascinated with the “Biblical End Times” as well, although I partly do not believe in it either. As the saying goes, NOTHING is impossible. Although I do not believe in the fanatic Christians, I am very fascinated in the Revelations the most in the Bible. They claim that the Second Coming of Jesus Christ will come soon. Part of me wants to believe it, but part of me doesn’t believe it because of Christian fanatics. They are the ones who gave Christianity a bad name, just like the Muslim terrorists gave Islam a bad name also. When it comes to Christianity, I do not know what is the real truth anymore nor do I believe everything in the Bible.
I do know that between Russia and USA, we have 99% of the world’s nuclear weapons. I think the Russians have twice as many nukes as we do. Because of the destructive power of nuclear weapons, it does not matter who has the most since Russia or USA can destroy the world many times over.
No, I do not remember the library! LOL jk Of course, I remember the library. I used to be into reading books about nuclear war. I was very fascinated by it and I had dreams about nuclear war. Right now, if I am with my fiancee, I do not care if we have a nuclear war since I will die very blissfully!
I have another thing to add to this. We are working on antimatter/matter energy so we can have space travel. If we were to make even ONE antimatter/matter weapon and use it, we would all be vaporized. It would be by far the most powerful weapon to ever be created and I do not think anything man-made can be more powerful than an antimatter/matter weapon. One antimatter/matter weapon is all we need to make this planet look like it never existed at all. There would be an empty spot where our planet would be.
Anti-matter technology is still at least 50 years off. What is known is that it takes an equal ratio to get a bang. So no one bomb and bye-bye Earth, nothing is that powerful outside of stars.
Here is an article on the Clean vs Salted weapons. http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Nwfaq/Nfaq1.html