How much damage would a nuclear bomb do?
Table of Contents
How much damage would a nuclear bomb do?
Summary of the effects
| Effects | Explosive yield / height of burst | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 kt / 200 m | 20 Mt / 5.4 km | |
| Urban areas completely levelled (20 psi or 140 kPa) | 0.2 | 6.4 |
| Destruction of most civilian buildings (5 psi or 34 kPa) | 0.6 | 17 |
| Moderate damage to civilian buildings (1 psi or 6.9 kPa) | 1.7 | 47 |
How many kilotons is the largest nuclear bomb?
The largest pure-fission bomb ever constructed, Ivy King, had a 500 kiloton yield, which is probably in the range of the upper limit on such designs.
How many kilotons are in a megaton?
1000
Megaton to Kiloton Conversion Table
| Megaton [Mton] | Kiloton [kton] |
|---|---|
| 1 Mton | 1000 kton |
| 2 Mton | 2000 kton |
| 3 Mton | 3000 kton |
| 5 Mton | 5000 kton |
What is a kiloton?
Definition of kiloton 1 : 1000 tons. 2 : an explosive force equivalent to that of 1000 tons of TNT.
How many years does it take for nuclear fallout to clear?
Over time the groundwater could become contaminated with fallout particles, and would remain contaminated for over 10 years after a nuclear engagement. It would take hundreds or thousands of years for an aquifer to become completely pure.
How far away from a nuclear bomb would you be blind?
For a bomb that size, people up to 21 km (13 miles) away would experience flash blindness on a clear day, and people up to 85 km (52.8 miles) away would be temporarily blinded on a clear night.
What happens when a nuclear bomb is exploded?
Fireball (0.56 miles wide) — In the area closest to the bomb’s detonation site, searing flames incinerate most buildings, objects, and people. Radiation (1.24 miles wide) — A nuclear bomb’s gamma and other radiation are so intense in this zone that 50\% or more of people die within “several hours to several weeks,” according to Nukemap.
What is the force of a 1 megaton bomb?
Within a 6-km (3.7-mile) radius of a 1-megaton bomb, blast waves will produce 180 tonnes of force on the walls of all two-storey buildings, and wind speeds of 255 km/h (158 mph). In a 1-km (0.6-mile) radius, the peak pressure is four times that amount, and wind speeds can reach 756 km/h (470 mph). Technically, humans can withstand
How high can a nuclear bomb explode?
By default, Nukemap assumed a 150-kiloton-yield warhead would explode 1.03 miles (1.65 km) above the city. An aerial detonation maximises a nuclear bomb’s destructive power, since it allows the blast’s energy to spread out. If a bomb is detonated on the ground, the soil absorbs more of that energy.