Emergency Alarm

[The Natural Philosopher]

That depends on how far away it was.

"The AsapSCIENCE video considers a 1 megaton bomb, which is 80 times larger than the bomb detonated over Hiroshima, but much smaller than many modern nuclear weapons.

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.

Heat is an issue for those closer to the blast. Mild, first-degree burns can occur up to 11 km (6.8 miles) away, and third-degree burns – the kind that destroy and blister skin tissue – could affect anyone up to 8 km (5 miles) away. Third-degree burns that cover more than 24 percent of the body would likely be fatal if people don't receive medical care immediately.

Those distances are variable, depending not just on the weather, but also on what you're wearing – white clothes can reflect some of the energy of a blast, while darker clothes will absorb it.

That's unlikely to make much difference for those unfortunate enough to be at the center of the explosion, though.

The temperatures near the site of the bomb blast during the Hiroshima explosion were estimated to be 300,000 degrees Celsius (540,000 degrees Fahrenheit) – which is roughly 300 times hotter than the temperature bodies are cremated at, so humans were almost instantly reduced to the most basic elements, like carbon.

But for those slightly farther away from the center of the blast, there are other effects to consider aside from heat. The blast of a nuclear explosion also drives air away from the site of the explosion, creating sudden changes in air pressure that can crush objects and knock down buildings.

Within a 6-km (3.7-mile) radius of a 1-megaton bomb, blast waves would produce 180 metric tons of force on the walls of all two-story 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 that much pressure, but most people would be killed by falling buildings."

So essentially any bomb shelter than can stop photons and resist a 158 mile wind will see you OK if you are 4 miles away.

In my case I'd squat inside my huge fireplaces and hope...they might stand up to the blast and gamma.

[The Natural Philosopher]

This is not a bad video and is reasonably factual and non sensational.

I query the magnitude of te dust/nuclear winter effect though. Serious volcanoes like Krakatoa did cause climatic effects, but at far higher blast intensitie than a nuclear war.

Its 200 megaton blast *below* the earths surface carried massive amounts of dust into the air resulting in pretty sunsets and a couple of cool wet summers.

[alan_m]

Last century it was a deep nuclear bunker for the ruling class civil servants and politicians and a door taken off its hinges for everyone else.

[tony sayer]

Here you go your own Nuke attack simulator!

Have fun!...

And this one quite fun too!..

[Vir Campestris]

I'm inclined to follow the old was-it-a-joke advice:

Bend over Put your head between your legs And kiss your ***** good bye.

At my time of life probably the best thing I could do would be to go and help set something up for my kids, allowing them to stay indoors more. I don't expect I'd last all that long, and I'm not sure I'd want to survive a major nuclear conflict.

Andy

[The Natural Philosopher]

I cant think of a better outcome than no London, Manchester. Glasgow, Cardiff, Birmingham and the assholes that inhabit them.