Tin Hat Ranch - How to Survive a Nuclear Bomb: Most Will Survive the Blast. Avoid a Prolonged Painful Death from Radiation.

When a nuclear weapon explodes a critical amount of nuclear materials (Uranium or Plutonium) are brought together very quickly by a conventional explosive. These nuclear materials are unstable and they release neutrons which hit other atoms which in turn release more neutrons. As these neutrons are released, large amounts of energy are also released. If you compress these materials in just the right fashion, with the conventional explosion, this release becomes a chain reaction of nuclear proportions. Countless neutrons are released along with massive amounts of energy across the electromagnetic spectrum; light, heat, X-rays, gamma rays. So much energy is released that it overwhelms the surroundings, vaporizing everything in its path. In nanoseconds you have a massive expanding fireball.

To an observer , somewhat removed from the event, the first indication something is wrong will be a bright flash, brighter than the sun. This initial flash is the first indication that something is wrong but it is also the first opportunity to glean critical information about the situation. By flash we mean an intense period of light.

When this initial flash occurs it will be unmistakable, your first reaction will be to look towards it but you must resist. At this point you dont know the power of the weapon which is exploding. It could blind you if you are close enough. On a clear day a bomb with sufficient yield can give a person third degree burns from dozens of miles, even if the blast never reaches you. Your first action should be to take cover behind the nearest solid object.

Your second action should be to note the duration of the pulse, either start counting or look at your watch. This might sound like a crazy suggestion but its not. Many may say that if your eyes are closed or averted from the blast how can you note the duration of the initial pulse. The truth is it will be unmistakable. It will illuminate everything around you, the light will permeate your closed eyelids, it will find its way under door frames and around closed curtains into interior rooms. Even if you are running down to a basement to take cover, you will see it.

The importance of noting the duration of the initial pulse is threefold. First, it will give you a good approximation as to the bombs yield or power, second you can make an educated guess as to the origin of the bomb, third you can deduce chances that more bombs are on the way.

As a bombs yield increases so does the duration of the initial flash. The bigger the weapon the more the chance of deadly fallout is a general rule. A flash with a duration of less than 3 seconds would indicate a bomb with a yield similar to those dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Not many weapons in the arsenals of todays first line nuclear powers are this small. Chances are the weapon originated from just a few sources. As of this writing in 2014, North Korea, India, and Pakistan are the only sources of weapons of this size. Iran is also getting close to a weapon. The other possibility, remote is it would seem, would be a terrorist weapon. Delivery systems aside, if a weapon of this smaller magnitude were to detonate you can almost be certain that it will be a single occurrence. The entities with these weapons have limited numbers and limited methods of delivering them. Although these weapons might be small in relative terms they can be the deadliest. If a smaller country or terrorist group were to use such a weapon the intent would be to cause as much death and suffering as possible. Exploding even a smaller bomb on the ground can eventually kill far more people than a larger bomb exploding in the air. Whereas fallout is very limited in an airburst it will be very significant if the bomb detonated underground in a parking garage (more on this later).

If the duration of the flash is a little longer, sa y closer to 10 seconds, then chances are the big dogs are involved. Most yields of weapons in the arsenals of countries like the United States, Russia, the UK, France, and China fall in the hundreds of kilotons. If the indication is a weapon in the hundreds of kilotons expect more detonations in the area. There arent many scenarios where an exchange of superpowers would be limited to a single weapon. If two Superpowers ever face off in a nuclear shooting war their primary objectives will be to destroy their adversarys ability to strike back. Whomever shoots first will target the other nations Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles, nuclear submarine bases, and the airfields that house nuclear bombers. This doesnt happen without a massive launch. Cities will be last on the list of targets. The good news is treaties like SALT I, SALT II, and START have greatly reduced the number of warheads and brought countries like the United States and Russia closer to parity. All things being equal, warheads are targeted at warheads, not cities. While even a warhead versus warhead exchange would be devastating it becomes increasingly unlikely to happen in the first place. The bad news is recent geopolitical events may begin to unravel this parity.