Nuclear weapons are the most dangerous weapons on earth. By using only one nuclear bomb, it can destroy a whole city, also killing millions of people and endangering the natural environment. A nuclear weapon is a device that uses nuclear fission, nuclear fusion, or a combination of the two processes to release energy in an explosive manner.

The first test of a nuclear weapon occurred in the United States on July 16, 1945, at the Alamogordo Bombing Range in south-central New Mexico. The test was code-named Trinity. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union had the most nuclear weapons. In 1988, the Soviet stockpile topped out at around 33,000 operational warheads, with another 10,000 previously deployed warheads that had been retired but not dismantled. With more than 32,000 nuclear warheads, the US stockpile peaked in 1966.

The countries that have nuclear weapons are:

US, Russia, UK, France, China, India, Pakistan, North Korea, Israel

EFFECTS ON HUMAN

Radiation damage causes a wide range of physical problems long after the acute effects of radiation have faded. These side effects, such as leukemia and cancer, can take two, three, or even ten years to arise. The long terms effect are:

Blood Disorders, Cataract & Malignant Tumors

i) Blood disorders: According to Japanese data, people who were exposed to the bomb had a higher rate of anemia. The reduction in white and red blood cells lasted for up to ten years after the bombing in some cases.

ii) Cataract: The survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, who were partially shielded and suffered partial hair loss, had a higher rate of cataracts.

iii) Malignant Tumor: Thyroid cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, and salivary gland cancer are all more common among Hiroshima and Nagasaki survivors than in the general population, and a significant correlation between exposure level and degree of incidence has been reported for thyroid cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, and salivary gland cancer. Radiation-induced cancers can take a decade or more to arise.

EFFECTS ON ENVIRONMENTAL

Nuclear bombs are lethal weapons that release energy by splitting uranium or plutonium atoms in atomic bombs or fusion of hydrogen atoms in hydrogen bombs, resulting in cataclysmic explosions. It will produce a fireball, shockwaves, and intense radiation. From vaporized debris, a mushroom cloud forms, dispersing radioactive particles that fall to earth, contaminating the air, soil, water, and food supply.

Sudden Annihilation, Radioactive Fallout, Genetic Mutations & Nuclear Winter

i) Sudden Annihilation: Most life forms in the target zone are instantly killed by nuclear weapons. When the United States dropped an atomic bomb over Hiroshima in 1945, for example, everything within a 4.4 square mile radius of the detonation was destroyed. According to a 1946 Manhattan Engineer District investigation report, the bomb had the effect of 20,000 tonnes of dynamite. "Humans and animals who survived Hiroshima were poisoned by radiation, suffered severe burns, and were injured by flying glass. 3 days later, the United States bombed Nagasaki, resulting in similar casualties. Trees were uprooted, snapped off, scorched, and stripped of their leaves in the surrounding areas.

ii) Radioactive Fallout: Nuclear bombs detonated above ground can release radioactive particles into the stratosphere, resulting in global fallout. Nuclear bombs produce even more fallout than nuclear power plant accidents, which are already severe. "According to J. Wargo, author of Green Intelligence: Creating Environments That Protect Human Health, an operator error at the Chernobyl nuclear facility in 1986 spewed radioactive fallout into the air, contaminating five million acres of cropland in Ukraine. High levels of radiation were soon detected in vegetables and milk from cows grazing on contaminated land in Europe.

iii) Genetic Mutations: Radiation can cause DNA changes in humans, plants, and animals, which can have negative consequences. According to a 1996 article in "Environmental Health Perspectives," radiation-induced genetic mutations have resulted in cancerous tumors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing survivors. Genetic mutations can also reduce reproductive capacity and cause odd changes in offspring's appearance, such as extra limbs. According to National Geographic in 2011, eggs and larvae of marine organisms living in radioactive seawater are particularly vulnerable to a genetic mutation.

iv) Nuclear Winter: Plantlife would die without warmth and sunlight for photosynthesis, causing mass starvation up the food chain. Even small-scale nuclear weapons use, according to the authors, could deplete the ozone layer, shorten the growing season, raise the temperature, and quicken the impact of global warming. Authors A. Robock and O.B. Toon suggest in a 2012 article published in "The Atomic Scientist" that dense smoke from a nuclear war would block sunlight and plunge the world into darkness.

REFERENCES

Nuclear weapon. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/technology/nuclear-weapon

Nuclear weapons: Which countries have them and how many are there? (2020). Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-51091897

Dowd, M. (2021). How nuclear bombs affect the environment. Retrieved from https://education.seattlepi.com/ocean-dead-zones-effects-marine-pollution-4760.html