After the bombs begin to fall, the appearance of the planet will change beyond recognition. For 50 years, this threat has lurked in every moment of our lives. The world lives with the knowledge that one person just needs to press a button and a nuclear holocaust will come.
We stopped thinking about it. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the idea of a massive nuclear strike has become the subject of science fiction films and video games. But in reality, this threat has not disappeared. The bombs are still in place and waiting in the wings. And there are always new enemies to be destroyed.
Scientists conducted tests and calculations to understand what life would be like after the atomic bombing. Some people will survive. But life on the smoldering remains of a destroyed world will be completely different.
10. Black rains will begin 
Almost immediately after a nuclear strike, heavy black rain will begin. It won't be the little rain that puts out the flames and kills the dust. These will be thick black jets of water with an oil-like texture, and they can kill you.
In Hiroshima, black rain began 20 minutes after the bombing. It covered an area with a radius of about 20 kilometers from the point of explosion and flooded the countryside with a thick liquid, from which one could receive 100 times more radiation than at the epicenter of the explosion.
The survivors of the explosion ended up in a burning city, the fires burned out oxygen, and people died of thirst. They were so thirsty as they made their way through the fire that many opened their mouths and tried to drink the strange liquid that fell from the sky. There was enough radiation in this liquid to make changes in a person's blood. The radiation was so strong that the effects of the rain are still felt in the places where it fell. We have every reason to believe that if the bomb falls again, it will happen again.
9. An electromagnetic pulse will cut off all electricity 
A nuclear explosion produces an electromagnetic pulse that can disable electrical appliances and even turn off the entire electrical network of the country.
During one of the nuclear tests, the impulse after the detonation of the atomic bomb was so powerful that it disabled street lights, televisions and telephones in houses at a distance of 1600 kilometers from the center of the explosion. Then it happened by accident, but since then there have been bombs designed specifically for this purpose.
If a bomb designed to send an electromagnetic pulse exploded at an altitude of 400-480 kilometers above a country the size of the United States, the entire electrical network throughout the territory would be cut off. Therefore, after the bombs fall, the lights will go out everywhere. All refrigerators for storing food will be turned off, all computer data will be lost. Worst of all, the treatment facilities will stop and we will lose clean drinking water.
It is expected that it will take six months of hard work to return the country to a normal working regime. But this is on condition that people will have the opportunity to work. For a long time after the bombs fall, we will have a life without electricity and clean water.
8. Smoke will block the sunlight 
Areas around the epicenters of explosions will receive an incredible amount of energy, fires will break out. Everything that can burn will burn. Not only buildings, forests and fences will burn, but even asphalt on the roads. Oil refineries, which have been one of the main targets since the Cold War, will be engulfed in explosions and flames.
The fires that start around the epicenter of each explosion will release thousands of tons of toxic smoke that will rise into the atmosphere and then higher into the stratosphere. At an altitude of about 15 kilometers above the Earth's surface, a dark cloud will appear, which will grow and spread under the influence of the wind until it covers the entire planet and blocks the access of sunlight.
This will drag on for years. For many years after the explosion, we will not see the sun, we will only be able to see black clouds overhead that will block out the light. It is difficult to say exactly how long this will last and when blue skies will reappear above us. It is believed that in the event of a global nuclear war, we will not see clear skies for about 30 years.
7. It will get too cold to grow food. 
When the clouds cover the sunlight, it will start to get colder. How much - depends on the number of bombs exploded. In extreme cases, global temperatures are expected to drop by as much as 20 degrees Celsius.
In the first year after a nuclear disaster, there will be no summer. Spring and autumn will become like winter. Plants will not be able to grow. Animals all over the planet will starve to death.
This will not be the beginning of a new ice age. During the first five years, the growing seasons of plants will become a month shorter, but then the situation will gradually improve, and after 25 years the temperature will return to normal. Life will go on - if we can live up to this period.
6. The ozone layer will be destroyed 
However, this life can no longer be called normal. A year after the nuclear bombing, holes in the ozone layer will begin to appear due to atmospheric pollution. It will be destructive. Even a small nuclear war that uses only 0.03 percent of the world's arsenal could destroy up to 50 percent of the ozone layer.
The world will die from ultraviolet rays. Plants around the world will begin to die, and those living beings that manage to survive will have to go through painful DNA mutations. Even the most resilient crops will become weaker, smaller and much less likely to reproduce. So when the skies clear and the world warms up again, growing food will become an incredibly difficult task. When people try to grow food, entire fields will die, and farmers who stay in the sun long enough will die of skin cancer.
5. Billions of people will starve 
After a full scale nuclear war, it would take about five years before anyone could grow a reasonable amount of food. With low temperatures, deadly frosts and destructive ultraviolet radiation from the sky, not many crops can live long enough to harvest. Millions of people will die of hunger.
Those who survive will have to find ways to get food, but it won't be easy. People living near the ocean may have a slightly better chance because the seas will cool more slowly. But life in the oceans will still be scarce.
The darkness from the blocked sky will kill the plankton, the main food source that keeps the ocean alive. Radioactive contamination will also accumulate in the water, reducing the number of living organisms and making any animal caught dangerous to eat.
Most of the people who survive the explosions will die within the first five years. The food will be too scarce and the competition too fierce.
4. Canned food will remain safe 
One of the main ways people survive in their first five years will be to drink bottled water and canned food—much like it is described in fiction, tightly sealed food bags will remain safe.
Scientists conducted an experiment in which they left bottled beer and soda water near the site of a nuclear explosion. The bottles were covered with a thick layer of radioactive dust on the outside, but their contents remained safe. Only those drinks that were almost at the epicenter became radioactive, but even their level of radiation was not lethal. However, the testing team rated these drinks as "unfit for food".
It is believed that canned foods will be as safe as these bottled drinks. It is also believed that water from deep underground wells may be safe to drink. Thus, the struggle for survival will be a struggle for access to village wells and food.
3. Bones will suffer from radiation 
Regardless of access to food, survivors will have to fight widespread cancer. Immediately after the explosion, a huge amount of radioactive dust will rise into the air, which will then begin to fall all over the world. The dust will be too fine to see, but the level of radiation in it will be large enough to kill.
One of the substances used in nuclear weapons is strontium-90, which the body mistakes for calcium and sends directly to the bone marrow and teeth. This leads to bone cancer.
It is not known what the level of radiation will be. It is not entirely clear how long the radioactive dust will begin to settle. But if it takes long enough, we can survive. If the dust begins to settle in only two weeks, its radioactivity will decrease by 1000 times, and this will be enough for survival. Cancer will increase, life expectancy will shorten, birth defects will become commonplace, but humanity will not be destroyed.
2. Widespread hurricanes and storms will begin 
During the first two or three years of cold and darkness, unprecedented hurricanes can be expected. Dust in the stratosphere will not only block out sunlight, but will also affect the weather.
Clouds will become different, they will contain much more moisture. Until things return to normal, we can expect it to rain almost constantly.
In coastal areas it will be even worse. Although a global nuclear winter will come due to a cold snap, the oceans will cool much more slowly. They will be relatively warm, which will cause massive storms along all coasts. Hurricanes and typhoons will cover all the coasts in the world, and this will last for years.
1. Humanity will survive 
Billions will die in a nuclear war. We can expect that about 500 million people will die immediately, and several billion more will die from hunger and cold.
However, there is every reason to believe that the hardiest handful of people can handle it. There won't be many of them, but it's a much more positive vision of a post-apocalyptic future than what came before. In the 1980s, all scientists agreed that the entire planet would be destroyed. But today we have a little more faith that some people will be able to survive.
After 25-30 years, the clouds will dissipate, the temperature will return to normal, life will begin again. Plants will appear. They may not be as fluffy as they used to be. But in a few decades, the world may look like modern-day Chernobyl, where dense forests rise above the remains of a dead city.
Life will continue and humanity will be reborn. But the world will never be the same again.
In the light of this unpleasant information, it would be logical to give some advice to sane people who, instead of howling idiotic prayers that "There will be no nuclear war, because there will never be!", soberly assess the current political moment, which dictates a high degree of danger of an attack.
To begin with, in connection with the complete collapse of the Institute of Civil Defense (GO) of Russia, there is no one to convey information about what needs to be done to save yourself and your loved ones during a nuclear attack to those who need it most - to US, the population Russia, so I will try to fill this gap.
Preamble.
IMPORTANT. Try to understand: the propaganda assertion that a global nuclear explosion will lead to total radioactive contamination and the death of all life on Earth is a cynical lie, and the "nuclear winter" that has been scaring us for 40 years is a modern fairy tale about the Snow Queen.
Remember - man-made nuclear disasters (like Chernobyl, Fukushima) in terms of contamination with radionuclides are several orders of magnitude more dangerous than the use of nuclear weapons - you can stand on the edge of the funnel from the explosion of a medium-sized nuclear warhead without danger to life in a month!
Practice says the same - the inhabitants of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, destroyed by the first nuclear bombs (extremely dirty), immediately rebuilt, settled, and live happily until now.
Yes, nuclear weapons are one of the most destructive elements in the human arsenal. However, its ability to destroy human civilization, and, moreover, the Earth's biosphere, is significantly exaggerated and politically distorted - in violation of all the principles of science, which has sufficiently thoroughly studied nuclear weapons and the possible consequences of its use.
Therefore, it is necessary to know that after the exchange of nuclear strikes, in Russia:
1. From 70 to 80% of the population will survive, and the mournful percentages (20-30) include not only those who die from the damaging factors of nuclear weapons immediately, but also die later from exposure, burns and contamination with radionuclides.
2. Temporarily unsuitable (due to infection) for living and running households. the activity of the territories will be no more than 5-7%.
3. Long-term uninhabitable territories (large cities, the vicinity of nuclear power plants, chemical plants, military facilities and other industrial enterprises) - about 10%.
4. In large cities (excluding Moscow, where at least 80% of the inhabitants will immediately die), subjected to an attack by several nuclear BBs and made uninhabitable, contrary to popular belief, the percentage of survivors, if it is below average, is insignificant.
Ambula.
Based on the preamble, we clearly understand that there is NO reason for tantrums, suicide and other madness!
On the contrary, there is a reason to strive to SURVIVE. Here's what to do.
1. BEFORE the start of JA:
We all need to understand that it will depend only on our readiness, composure, calmness, sober calculation and assessment of events whether we ourselves will be saved and whether we will save our loved ones.
First of all you need to contact the civil defense unit or the Ministry of Emergency Situations at the place of residence and find out from them where the shelter or shelter closest to your house or apartment is located - this will not cost you anything.
City dwellers it is desirable to have a house in the countryside as a "support base" - away from large cities. The house should be located away from any industrial facilities (including from hydroelectric power stations and areas flooded in the event of the destruction of their dams), nuclear power plants, military units, and transport routes.
The house should have a grocery bookmark for at least a couple of months for the whole family and other useful things that will give you a chance to survive in the conditions of radioactive contamination and the destruction of state institutions:
household dosimeter, clothes, gas masks + elements for them, capes, raincoats, a supply of food in sealed packaging for long-term storage, drinking water, strong alcohol (alcohol and vodka) flashlights + batteries, matches, HF-VHF receiver, a large first-aid kit which includes various general-purpose drugs, military special first-aid kits to reduce the effects of radiation, a car (Niva, or UAZ), as well as a good supply of household detergents and cleaning products for decontaminating and disinfecting clothes, shoes, a car, permitted weapons and ammunition, a gas generator + fuel supply for it and car.
Your city apartment should have: trekking equipment for all family members, documents, money, weapons, small first aid kit, canned food, bottled water.
All this should be at your place in readiness and each family member should know where it all is, how to use it and what to do in certain situations. It is necessary to determine collection points in advance and have means of communication like wokie-toki - mobile communications will not work.
It’s clear that such training is far from affordable and affordable for everyone, so the minimum program may look like the one described above, starting with the words: “... your city apartment should have:” - this is not difficult and not expensive.
2. During a nuclear attack:
You need to know that when you see a flash of a nuclear explosion, it’s too late to seek shelter - you need to quickly take cover in the nearest ditch, moat, underpass, metro station, stone building, and lie down with your feet towards the explosion, and cover your head with your hands. After the shock wave passes, you need to find a more serious shelter or quickly get to your apartment or house, tightly close all windows, doors, cracks, turn off all electricity. If you live in a large city, then most likely several BBs will be used on its territory, so it makes sense to spend some time after the first nuclear explosion at the place where the first explosion caught you. Remember - the duration of the nuclear explosion is not four years, but from 1 to 3 hours.
3. Right after the nuclear attack:
You survived and that's great! It must be borne in mind that the level of radiation two days after the explosion will decrease by 8 times, so it will be relatively safe to leave the destroyed, contaminated city and go to a clean area.
If you have a dosimeter, then you need to turn it on as often as possible and check the level of radiation. As you move, the p/background level should fall, which means that you are moving away from the epicenter of the explosion. If there is no dosimeter, it does not matter, you need to move in the direction where you see less destruction.
Important. The highest safe level of radiation is 50 microroentgens per hour. Natural background 2-10 microroentgen/h. The dose of radiation is considered to be the multiplication of the current level by the time spent in a dirty place: 100 roentgens captured by you are dangerous to health, at 300 - certain death outside the special hospital, and what kind of special hospital after a nuclear attack?
Where to go? It would be good even in peacetime to outline a path that would run far from important industrial and military facilities, nuclear power plants, oil and gas pipelines, since with a high probability such facilities will also be subjected to nuclear strikes.
Remember: if you are a resident of the outskirts of large cities, or your "support base" is near the city, then you will have to leave your house as soon as possible, even if it is completely intact and is not located in the zone of radioactive contamination. This must be done because a millionth wave of exodus from the ruined city will sweep through you, and this wave will consist of hungry, embittered, sick, aggressive and often insane people.
Be Realistic- you will not be able to protect your oasis of well-being even if you have weapons - you will die yourself, and destroy your relatives. Therefore, taking the maximum number of goodies for survival, drop everything and leave. On foot, because the roads will be completely blocked by abandoned cars.
Pretty much the same tactics. must be followed if you, all so prepared and equipped, find yourself in an "exodus wave" from a major city. You need to get out as quickly as possible not only from the destroyed, infected city, but also from the crowd of aggressive, demoralized, hungry people, most of whom do not even have a can of canned food.
You need to discard hypocrisy and clearly understand - the time has come for the "man-to-man wolf", the priority is the survival of your family, and those who are outside the circle of the family are your potential enemies. If you do not understand this, you will perish yourself and destroy your family.
Do not panic! Your survival is the priority of the work of the civil defense forces and the Ministry of Emergency Situations, they have at their disposal all the necessary forces and means, as well as a wonderful organization like ROSREZERV will allow you to live for at least 6 months, since this organization has extensive material reserves, ranging from food and medicine to excavators, metal, tents and diesel generators. These reserves are designed to provide the entire population of Russia for 6 months.
They have at least some sense, but what I know and see tells me that hoping that you will be saved, warmed, comforted and fed ("now I will eat, now they will feed me!" (c) - do not costs.
Gotta be realistic- the civil defense system has been dismantled, and it is naive to count on the fact that in a state completely destroyed by a nuclear strike, one of the enthusiasts will break into a cake in order to save a hungry multi-million herd.
Rosrezerv? Yes, of course, after a nuclear strike, some of its storage facilities will certainly survive, but something tells me that in these storage facilities even now, before the strike, for a long, long time, there is far from so much everything, everything, everything, in order to "provide for six months the entire population ".
And most importantly- the surviving vaults will no doubt be seized by armed units that have turned into gangs, which, after a short period of meager distribution of nishtyaks to the survivors, will logically judge - "we can't feed everyone, so we'll leave it to ourselves."
So, soberly assessing the situation, I can advise you to rely only on yourself, and if you hear on your receiver that somewhere there is at least some kind of power, and the civil defense forces will really do something in some places in some area, then it is necessary to strive by any means to reach these areas and then act according to circumstances.
However, in any case, you will have to act according to the circumstances, and taking into account the fact that, according to a sober, impartial assessment, after the first calendar winter since the nuclear cataclysm, out of 80% of the surviving population, no more than 20% will survive - the rest will die of starvation, epidemics and hellish, deadly fights for grub.
In general, it will be necessary to try VERY hard to be in this 20%.
You really try, friends, and I will be very happy if my advice will help you survive!
Have a nice weekend, friends!
How to survive after a nuclear warNuclear war is not a scenario that most people seek to live through. In the 1960s, the Cuban Missile Crisis pushed us to a dangerous edge, but humanity still hasn't been "lucky enough" to experience an event that would bring about its potential extinction.
Nuclear winter is itself a theoretical assumption; scientists believe that in the event of a nuclear war, a huge amount of soot would be released into the stratosphere and spread by winds across the planet, blocking the sun and causing temperatures to drop. The plants will wither and die, then the turn of the animals will follow. The collapse of the food chain will lead to the extinction of the human race.
Nuclear winter can last for years or even decades, and while it lasts, people who survived a nuclear war will not be able to restore civilization. The only way to ensure the survival of the human race is to follow the advice for surviving a nuclear winter.
10. Live in the countryside
This may sound like useless advice, but the question of who survives the first nuclear explosions will be decided by no more than geographic location. Estimates made in the 1960s indicated that Russia was launching a devastating attack on the United States in which 100-150 million people would be killed by the first explosions - more than two-thirds of the population at that time. Major cities will be completely inaccessible as a result of the explosion and the radiation that will accompany the explosions. In general, if you live in a city, you are almost certainly doomed, but if you live in a rural area, you have a moderate chance of survival.
9. Renounce religious beliefs
This advice (and portrayal) may be somewhat controversial, but there are many good reasons why religious beliefs can hinder the efforts of survivors of a potential nuclear war. First of all, going to church on Sundays is not the number one priority after a nuclear disaster. But seriously, in order to survive, you may have to perform actions that are unthinkable for many religious (or simply highly moral) individuals (see #8). The thinking of the survivors must be decidedly "Machiavellian": the whole world is open to us; questions of morality are secondary to the question of survival at all costs.
If your religion forbids you from eating certain foods, you must forgo such dietary commitments and eat what you can find. Perhaps the realization that God (or any other deity) could prevent the collapse of civilization, if he/she really exists, will help you to give up your faith.
8. Kill/Release Pets
So, you survived the initial explosion, and now you are an atheist living in the countryside. What's next? Let's think about your pets. Pets need food, water and care - and don't get too fond of them during a nuclear winter. You won't live long if you share every bite of food with Rex.
Those heartless people who may be thinking of killing and eating their pet(s), be aware that food will be extremely scarce. Most people (hopefully) find these thoughts disgusting and will simply release their beloved animal into the wild. But in all seriousness, nuclear winter survivors, give up all hope of saving your goldfish. Small animals can simply be destroyed without even trying to eat - this, at least, will save them from starvation in the future.
7. Take cover
Science moment: in the event of several nuclear explosions in large cities, a huge amount of soot and thick smoke from fires will rise into the stratosphere, preventing sunlight from reaching most of the Earth's surface for many years or even decades.
The surface temperature will decrease sharply, and near-zero values will persist indefinitely. In other words, the need for warm clothing can't be ignored - so you can start packing up warmer items if you haven't already. Unfortunately, permanent freezing is not the crown of your worries, scientists assume that there will be massive destruction of the ozone layer, that is, a huge amount of ultraviolet radiation will leak onto the surface of the planet, which leads to death from skin cancer. You can reduce this effect by avoiding sleeping outdoors and always wear some sort of head covering to protect your face from the cold and harmful UV rays.
6. Arm yourself
If you live in a country where guns are readily available and legal, it won't be too hard for you to arm yourself against robbers or would-be cannibals. Desperate conditions may cause many survivors to steal food from other survivors in order to prevent starvation. Robbery of a local shop with a handgun is a perfectly viable option for those in America (or any other country without significant firearm control) - but care must be taken to ensure that the gun is not pulled by the shop owner. Otherwise, you can save a knife for protection. For several months after the initial explosions, hunting will still be possible, as the animals are not yet extinct. If possible, stock up on meat early on.
5. Learn to recognize cannibals
When all the big meaty animals die out after a nuclear war, it will be inevitable that humans will resort to cannibalism to survive. In fact, you may consider cannibalizing yourself at some point when you are starving and find a useful corpse in your area.
As for other survivors: they will either try to help you or try to eat you, of course, it is important to distinguish between these two reasons. People who eat human meat tend to suffer from Kuru symptoms; pollution of the brain, which leads to very noticeable consequences. For example, if a person is walking towards you, swaying from side to side, and is struggling to walk in a straight line, then it is better to run away, as he is either drunk or has Kuru symptoms. Other symptoms include uncontrollable shaking and eerie outbursts of laughter in inappropriate situations. Kuru is an incurable disease and death usually occurs within a year of infection, so don't eat human flesh - no matter the nuclear winter!
4. Travel alone
Introverts will thrive in a post-apocalyptic setting, at least compared to those who instinctively reach for cell phones when alone. Having a family - especially if it includes children - is not a very smart move, given the lack of food. Ignore the 'thugs' or 'raiders' gang clichés that Hollywood feeds us in movies like The Road and The Book of Eli. In reality, such groups will never be able to find enough food to sustain themselves in the long run. This does not mean that you should abandon (or eat) your family. Simply looking for a large group is not a good option for those who want to avoid starvation.
3. Eat insects
The drastic reduction in sunlight and rainfall during a nuclear winter will make growth impossible and kill most of the plant life on Earth, many animals in turn will quickly die out from lack of food. For this reason, small insects such as ants, crickets, wasps, grasshoppers and beetles are among the creatures that are likely to survive in the long run. They will also be fantastic sources of protein for maintaining muscle mass: Grasshoppers have the highest percentage of protein: 20g for every 100g of body weight. Crickets are rich in iron and zinc, and ants are excellent sources of calcium. Granted, insects aren't as tasty as a bucket of fried chicken (though you don't know for sure), but they are at least preferable to starvation.
2. Take out the trash
Perhaps this is not the most pleasant activity in a post-apocalyptic time. Who wouldn't want to be able to roam the mall stealing any item they want without experiencing legal retribution? However, don't get too excited: looting cash registers will become a pointless exercise with the collapse of civilization. Instead, it's better to focus on hacking food and drink vending machines. If you're hungry, try emptying trash cans for leftovers or looking for canned goods that have an indefinite shelf life. It's also fairly easy to find clothes to keep you warm, and if your country doesn't have gun control, you can find guns to protect yourself.
1. Avoid the pollution area
The photo above shows the ghost town of Pripyat, the site of the 1986 Chernobyl accident. Due to massive radioactive contamination caused by an explosion at a nuclear power plant, the city was evacuated. The disaster caused 31 immediate deaths from radiation poisoning and several hundred more from various types of cancer subsequently. Today the city is uninhabitable. Radiation levels are too high to sustain life safely. After a nuclear disaster, radiation levels are likely to be much higher. Everyone who is inside the major cities that will be bombed will quickly receive a dose of radioactive poisoning and soon die.
I had a dream... not everything in it was a dream.
The bright sun went out - and the stars
Wandering aimlessly, without rays
In space eternal; icy ground
Worn blindly in the moonless air.
The hour of the morning came and went,
But he did not bring the day after him ...
Darkness, George Byron
According to the theory of the demographer of the era of romanticism, T. Malthus, the birth rate of any kind increases exponentially, while the food supply grows only in arithmetic progression, that is, much more slowly. War is one of the natural and most likely means of controlling the birth rate and the size of humanity.
Today, the planet is already overpopulated - 6.8 billion people live on it, and almost a billion of them are continuously hungry. Wars take place regularly, and they are still going on now, even in states close to Europe, such as, for example, in neighboring, heavily overpopulated and poor Ukraine.
But, there are no global wars affecting all of humanity, and even with the use of weapons of mass destruction. It is too dangerous and governments are trying to avoid such conflicts as best they can. But, known for almost half a century, somewhat playful, and in many ways the correct Murphy's law says - if something can happen, it will definitely happen. Moreover, events will go according to the worst scenario for us. It turns out that nuclear war could happen one day.
Several times in a row humanity has already avoided a nuclear apocalypse. Today, when there are already a lot of countries possessing the technology of creating atomic (hydrogen, neutron) bombs and their means of delivery, and humanity, it would seem, should be a thousand times more careful, the most acute international political crisis is developing again, associated with the already mentioned war in Ukraine, which may, in the end, lead, if not to the apocalypse, then to a local nuclear conflict.
I personally have no doubt that if the Ukrainian strategists had a "nuclear button" at hand, they would not hesitate to use it. Remember the phrase of Yulia Tymoshenko that Russians “should be shot with nuclear weapons” or the words of the former Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Valery Heletey, who, in an interview, suggested that during the storming of the Lugansk airport “Russian troops” (which, of course, he , did not see) fired nuclear mines from a self-propelled mortar 2S4 "Tulip".
But the former prime minister, like the former minister of defense, is the elite of Ukrainian society. If there were others in their place, they would not even argue. At the same time, the words “thrown into the world” about nuclear weapons look like an attempt to seek protection from the West and ... help with an “adequate response”?
In this regard, it is worth remembering the previous situations that almost ended in fatal consequences for humanity.
Operation Trojan
The first nuclear attack, on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, was conceived and carried out by the United States of America. Then, in 1945, a secret directive of the Joint Military Planning Committee appeared on the preparation of the atomic bombing of large cities in the USSR. They were supposed to drop 196! atomic bombs.
When the USSR nevertheless managed to steal and create its own technology for the production of nuclear weapons, the United States developed the Trojan plan, which involved an attack on the USSR on the new year, January 1, 1950. The nuclear arsenal of the Soviet Union was then much more modest than the American one, and the Washington hawks were almost sure of victory. So, it is quite likely that the USSR could already then become a testing ground for full-scale tests of American bombs. Yes, but the Americans calculated in time that they would lose half of their bombers, and the plan would not be fully implemented. That's what kept them back. By the way, there is an opinion that the world was saved by one of the first supercomputers in the world ENIAK, which was involved by the Pentagon in calculating the results of the operation.
And later, in 1961, after testing the Tsar Bomba AN 602 in the USSR, the United States abandoned the idea of a preventive nuclear strike.
Khrushchev, Kennedy and the art of diplomacy
The world came to the brink of destruction for the second time as a result of the Cuban Missile Crisis, in October 1962. Then, in response to the deployment of medium-range missiles in Turkey, the USSR installed R-12 tactical nuclear missiles in Cuba. The United States, in response, organized a naval blockade of Cuba and began preparations for an invasion of the island.
Only thanks to the magnificent art of diplomacy shown by both sides of the conflict, the war was avoided. But then the USSR had practically no chance in front of the US military machine. If we talk only about missiles, then the country had 75 ballistic missiles ready for launch - not reliable enough, requiring lengthy pre-launch preparation. Moreover, only 25 missiles could take off at the same time. The United States already had 700 ballistic missiles then. In terms of other weapons, the forces were also not equal, it seemed to be anti-missile defense.
Are the forces equal?
Now Russia has a serious nuclear potential, which is sufficient to deter any aggression. According to a military expert, a former head of Israeli intelligence, even in the event of a local exchange of nuclear strikes, the damage to the United States would be unbearable. That is why a direct war between the two largest possessors of nuclear weapons, Russia and the United States, has been postponed for the time being.
Quite another matter is local conflicts. Today, many states with developing economies, such as Pakistan and India, have already joined the "nuclear" club. North Korea has received its "bomb" and is preparing to join the "nuclear club" and orthodox Iran.
That is why there is a danger that a local conflict will break out somewhere, which will draw the largest nuclear powers into its orbit. And here already - expect trouble.
And, of course, you can use conventional weapons. The United States, for example, is now ready to fight with non-nuclear, but only precision-guided weapons. According to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, the concept of a lightning-fast "global strike" has been worked out in the United States for more than ten years. It provides for "strike with non-nuclear weapons at any point on the planet within one hour." "According to the results of the military game held at the Pentagon at the end of last year, with the help of 3.5-4 thousand units of precision-guided weapons, the United States can destroy the main infrastructure facilities of the enemy in 6 hours and deprive him of the ability to resist."
If such a strike is inflicted on Russia, then the main targets will be the forces of strategic nuclear deterrence. "According to current US expert estimates, such a strike could destroy 80 to 90 percent of our nuclear potential," the Deputy Prime Minister said.
Nevertheless, Russia, of course, will respond with a nuclear strike...
If there is a war...
Thousands of fiction and research books have been written on the topic of the post-nuclear apocalypse, hundreds of films have been shot. Directors and writers see the apocalypse in different ways, but they are united in one thing - people, in their opinion, will be able to survive on earth. But such an interpretation requires the plot. And how will it really be?
There are several theories today about what the post-nuclear world will be like. According to a study by American scientists Owen, Robock and Turco, who tried to simulate a conflict with the use of nuclear weapons between India and Pakistan, 6.6 million tons of soot will be released into the atmosphere. This will reduce the average temperature on Earth by 1.25 degrees Celsius. Radioactive fallout will fall all over the world for some time, causing people to die and become seriously ill even in countries that are prosperous and remote from conflict.
About a billion people will die from radioactive contamination and lack of medical care, and as a result of a decrease in productivity in the world (due to early post-nuclear frosts, lower temperatures and reduced rainfall), the number of hungry on the planet will increase by another one and a half billion (today 850 million are starving on the planet). of people). The cost of food will rise substantially all over the world. Such a scenario is called "nuclear fall" by scientists. But this, as they say, is still “flowers”.
Option one
A number of scientists believe that if Russia and the United States “clash” in a nuclear conflict, a nuclear winter will begin, humanity may die, and the existence of higher forms of life on our planet will be impossible. Such conclusions, at one time, were independently reached by scientists V. V. Aleksandrov and G. S. Stenchikov in 1983, in the USSR and the team of Carl Sagan from Cornell University in the USA.
Thousands of nuclear explosions will lift hundreds of millions of tons of earth, dust and soot from fires into the air. Cities will die from fiery tornadoes that will give rise to fires. They say that the height of such a tornado can reach five kilometers, it draws in everything that comes across and does not end until everything around it burns to the ground.
Fine dust from tornadoes will enter the troposphere, and since there is no convection there, the dust will “hang” for years, obscuring sunlight. Sun. Darkness descends on the earth. In the middle of summer, even in the tropics there will be frosts. The ground will freeze several meters deep, the rains will stop. Due to the temperature difference between the slowly cooling water in the ocean and the heated land, unprecedented storms will begin.
But to feel and see all this, according to the authors of the hypothesis, there will be, in general, no one. No one will see the nuclear spring. Plants, animals and insects that did not die from the explosions will be burned by radiation, the rest will die out from lack of food and water. The surface of unfrozen rivers, seas, and after a while slowly cooling oceans will be littered with terribly stinking fish and dead marine animals, even plankton will die.
All food chains will be broken. Perhaps some lower forms of life will remain on the planet - protozoa, moss, lichens. But the higher ones - including, by the way, rats and cockroaches - will die.
Theory two - alternative
It is described in detail in the article by I. Ibduragimov "On the failure of the concept of "nuclear night" and "nuclear winter" due to fires after a nuclear defeat."
The main postulate that draws attention to itself is that hundreds of nuclear tests have already been carried out, which did not give a cumulative effect, did not create fire tornadoes and did not emit thousands of tons of dust into the atmosphere. Moreover, the explosions of the largest volcanoes on the planet, the power of which is many times greater than the power of any man-made nuclear devices. And the dust did not close the atmosphere, although its emissions were monstrous. The earth's atmosphere is too large to be polluted completely even as a result of a nuclear war.
A situation similar to that which, according to the authors of the hypothesis, causes fire tornadoes in cities, also arises as a result of large-scale forest fires, when millions of square kilometers of forest are burning simultaneously. But tornadoes are not observed there, and the emission of soot as a result of such fires is ten times less than calculated by the creators of the "nuclear winter" theory. Why? The combustible mass is distributed over a large area, and not concentrated in one place. Approximately the same will be in cities, where combustible substances, as if on shelves, are laid out in different places in apartments and buildings. In this case, up to 20% of all combustible materials are burned - and no more. There is not enough energy for more, even the biggest fire. This means that there may not be fiery tornadoes that will fill the troposphere with dust.
Even if a firestorm does form, there will be a powerful flow of air into the turbulence zone, the combustion efficiency will increase and ... there will be much less soot. Not to mention the fact that in the epicenters of a nuclear explosion and at a certain distance from them, almost everything will burn out, without any soot.
Now - about radiation. Of course, radioactive contamination is extremely dangerous and fatal to humans. And this terrible threat will not disappear anywhere. But still, people, even now, manage to survive in conditions of increased background radiation, for example, in the Chernobyl zone, where I myself have been. In the summer, unless, of course, you know about the infection, any traveler will be shocked by the beauty of the untouched nature of these places. Vegetation is raging in the zone, many animals, reservoirs are teeming with fish. So, at least, the flora and fauna there didn’t exactly disappear anywhere - they adapted.
It turns out, in principle, that there may not be a nuclear winter at all? Quite. There is a hypothesis that the studies of the "nuclear winter", carried out and popularized in the 1980s, were inspired by the intelligence of the United States and the USSR in order to delay a nuclear war and (or) stimulate disarmament and keep the conflicting parties from increasing the production of nuclear weapons. The technology of such manipulations is called "Overton Window" and is a Western development, which also leads to certain reflections.
A real "nuclear war" may be a difficult and inevitable episode in the development of mankind, but by no means fatal. It, like the consequences of the “nuclear winter”, can be experienced in places unaffected by strikes or, for example, in appropriate bunkers.
Survive in the bunker
Modern studies (more precisely, full-scale tests) show that as a result of nuclear explosions (they will be immediately crushed by a seismic wave), only those underground shelters that will be less than a hundred meters from the epicenters.
Therefore, in well-equipped underground concrete bunkers, a fairly large number of people can survive for a long time - maybe even thousands. Even if at first they have nowhere to go out, if it is impossible to stay outside due to dust and radioactive contamination, it is possible to hold out in such a shelter for up to a decade (and more nuclear winter is unlikely to continue).
According to the writer Dmitry Glukhovsky, people will be able to survive even somewhere in the subway and underground utilities. Although this is a very controversial statement. Tunnels exist thanks to a developed infrastructure for their repair and maintenance. Even if there is a terrorist attack or a disaster, for the metro it is a tragedy with casualties and destruction. And without supervision, after a while, the subway tunnels will begin to deteriorate and collapse on their own ... Fuel reserves in non-specialized underground structures will not last long. If there is ventilation with anti-radiation filters, this is, of course, good, but it will also not last long without repair. In short, this scenario needs to be carefully tested by the "mythbusters" Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage.
The only problem that can arise in the confined space of a bunker or subway tunnel is social relationships. There will be nowhere to go from the bunker, therefore, the strongest may well become the leader there - for example, the head of security or the senior officer on duty. And he will force all the rest to obey him by force and threats. And arrange a nightmare, worse than what will happen upstairs. For example, he will create a harem of wives and daughters of elderly politicians who are trying to wait out the nuclear nightmare. Someone living underground may not stand it, go crazy or break loose and kill someone or everyone who is in the bunker. This is especially likely if there will be social inequality between different groups of people.
Perhaps, to the reader, such an assumption will seem like a mocking satire, but unfortunately, it is quite real.
It is not obvious how reliable the connection between such a bunker and the survivors outside will be. This social paradox was hinted at in his book "Parabellum" by the notorious Alexander Zinoviev.
Better in peace...
Of course, it is best if the horrors of nuclear war bypass us. And without this nightmare, the life of mankind is difficult and full of dangers. Still, it's better to remember what might happen one day...
Most of the destruction from a nuclear explosion will come from a shock wave rushing at supersonic speeds (more than 350 m/s in the atmosphere). While no one saw, we took the W88 thermonuclear warhead with a yield of 475 kilotons, which is in service with the United States, and found out that when it explodes within a radius of 3 km from the epicenter, there will be absolutely nothing and no one left; at a distance of 4 km, the buildings will be thoroughly destroyed, and at a distance of 5 km and further, the destruction will be medium and weak. The chances of survival will appear only if you are at least 5 km from the epicenter (and then if you have time to hide in the basement).
light emission
Causes ignition of combustible materials. But even when you are far from gas stations and warehouses with Moment, you risk getting burns and eye damage. Therefore, hide behind some obstacle like a huge stone block, cover your head with a sheet of metal or other non-combustible thing and close your eyes. After exploding W88 at a distance of 5 km, you may not be killed by the shock wave, but the light beam can cause second-degree burns. These are the ones with nasty blisters on the skin. At a distance of 6 km there is a risk of getting first-degree burns: redness, swelling, swelling of the skin - in a word, nothing serious. But the most pleasant thing will happen if you manage to be 7 km from the epicenter: an even tan is guaranteed.
electromagnetic pulse
If you are not a cyborg, the impulse is not terrible for you: it disables only electrical and electronic equipment. Just know that if a mushroom cloud appears on the horizon, it is useless to take a selfie in front of it. The range of the pulse depends on the height of the explosion and the environment and ranges from 3 to 115 km.
penetrating radiation
Despite such a terrible name, the thing is cheerful and harmless. It destroys all living things only within a radius of 2-3 km from the epicenter, where you will be killed anyway by a shock wave.
radioactive contamination
The meanest part of a nuclear explosion. It is a huge cloud consisting of radioactive particles raised into the air by an explosion. The territory of the spread of radioactive contamination is highly dependent on natural factors, primarily on the direction of the wind. If you blow up W88 with a wind at a speed of 5 km / h, the radiation will be dangerous at a distance of up to 130 km from the epicenter in the direction of the wind (the infection does not spread further than 3 km against the wind). The rate of death from radiation sickness depends on the remoteness of the epicenter, weather, terrain, the characteristics of your body and a bunch of other factors. Infected people can either die instantly or live for years. How this happens is purely a matter of luck.
