Mell What are the effects of nuclear weapons on humans?
A nuclear weapon detonation in or near a populated area would – as a result of the blast wave, intense heat, and radiation and radioactive fallout – cause massive death and destruction, trigger large-scale displacement[6] and cause long-term harm to human health and well-being, as well as long-term damage to the …
How much damage does a nuclear bomb cause?
Summary of the effects
| Effects | Explosive yield / height of burst | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 kt / 200 m | 1 Mt / 2.0 km | |
| Urban areas completely levelled (20 psi or 140 kPa) | 0.2 | 2.4 |
| Destruction of most civilian buildings (5 psi or 34 kPa) | 0.6 | 6.2 |
| Moderate damage to civilian buildings (1 psi or 6.9 kPa) | 1.7 | 17 |
How much damage can a nuclear bomb cause?
If exploded at the optimum height, therefore, a 10-megaton weapon, which is 1,000 times as powerful as a 10-kiloton weapon, will increase the distance tenfold, that is, out to 17.7 km (11 mi) for severe damage and 24 km (15 mi) for moderate damage of a frame house. Looking for something? Find here!
What are the long term effects of nuclear weapons?
Longer-term effects on human health and the environment are less certain but have been extensively studied. The impacts of a nuclear explosion depend on many factors, including the design of the weapon (fission or fusion) and its yield; whether the detonation takes place in the air (and at what altitude),…
How does a nuclear explosion affect the human body?
Nuclear explosions produce air-blast effects similar to those produced by conventional explosives. The shock wave can directly injure humans by rupturing eardrums or lungs or by hurling people at high speed, but most casualties occur because of collapsing structures and flying debris.
What are some of the effects of nuclear fallout?
Figure 6.2 is similar, but also includes the probability of death or serious injury from acute exposure to external gamma radiation from fallout, for illustrative weather conditions, assuming hypothetically that 50 percent of the weapon yield is derived from fission and that a static population is in the open.