A nuclear bomb may revive the Cold War, which ended 30 years ago.
With tensions between Russia and NATO over Ukraine and the U.S. and China over Taiwan, nuclear war is no longer a distant possibility.
Nuclear War Possibility Amid Ukraine-Russia Chaos
People have speculated online what they would do and where they would shelter in the case of a nuclear war after President Biden mentioned nuclear "armageddon" and Elon Musk tweeted that "nuclear war probability is rising rapidly."
The safest area to go in case of a nuclear bomb depends on where the bomb is targeted, the size of the nuclear weapons, the time of year, the weather, and other considerations.
Nuclear war probability is rising rapidly
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 9, 2022
Nuclear bombs employ hefty, unstable isotopes of radioactive materials to unleash havoc.
The U.S. bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 killed hundreds of thousands of civilians using nuclear fission bombs. Their uranium and plutonium fuels underwent an almost instantaneous chain reaction of an atom splitting, releasing the equivalent energy of 15,000 and 21,000 tons of TNT, respectively.
Business Insider says modern nuclear bombs are 20 to 30 times stronger than those deployed on Japan. Russia and the U.S. each have 5,000 to 6,000 nuclear weapons; China has 350; France with 290; the U.K. has 225; India and Pakistan have 160.
General view of the "sarcophagus" covering the destroyed 4th power block of Chernobyl's nuclear power plant 27 February 2006. Chernobyl's number-four reactor, in what was then the Soviet Union and is now Ukraine, exploded 26 April 1986, sending a radioactive cloud across Europe and becoming the world's worst civilian nuclear disaster. Following the accident, a concrete sarcophagus was built over the stricken reactor and a new 20,000-tonne steel case to cover the whole plant is planned on being constructed between 2008 and 2009. The power station was eventually shut down 15 December 2000.
ALSO READ: Nuclear Power Plants in Ukraine Won't Withstand Wars [Report]
Where to Hide in the United States During Nuclear War
There's no way to determine where a nuclear weapon would be launched, but several reports may guess it would target New York City or Washington D.C.
Maine, Oregon, Northern California, and Western Texas may be safest in a nuclear war due to their absence of significant metropolitan areas and nuclear power stations.
The bomb's surge of scorching hot air would crush and destroy combustible buildings.
"I am of the view that a rural area which is not downwind of an obvious target is the best place if you want to avoid the fallout and other effects of the bomb," Dr. Mark R. StJ Foreman, an associate professor at the Chalmers University of Technology in Göteborg, Sweden, told Newsweek.
He also recommended staying at a valley where the hills would protect a person from heat and explosion from bombs miles away.
Foreman said a site where it's easy to dig a bunker or alter an existing building for fallout protection would also be good.
He explained that a person may need to shelter for days to prevent radioactive exposure even if the subsequent bomb detonation is far away.
A railway tunnel is a fantastic spot to hide if the trains aren't moving. Park an automobile atop a mechanic's inspection trench, he added. Fill the automobile with sandbags. Underneath the automobile. The car's dirt and being underground shelter you from gamma radiation.
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