Exactly the same thing as a TNT bomb of the same yield.
No, a single nuclear weapon is not powerful enough to blow up an entire continent. The destructive power of a nuclear weapon is concentrated in a relatively small area known as the blast radius. The impact would be devastating locally, but the effect would not extend to an entire continent.
The impact of the weakest nuclear weapon on a target is generally less destructive compared to more powerful nuclear weapons. Weaker nuclear weapons have a smaller blast radius and lower levels of radiation, resulting in less damage and casualties. However, any nuclear weapon has the potential to cause significant devastation and loss of life.
An underground nuclear blast is referred to as an underground nuclear test. It involves detonating a nuclear weapon below the surface of the Earth, effectively containing the explosion underground. This type of blast generates seismic waves that can be detected and analyzed for various purposes, including testing nuclear weapons technology.
There are too many factors to give you one simple answer. It will depend on the yield (size) of the weapon, where it is detonated (on ground, low airburst, high airburst) etc. A 150 kiloton weapon, low airburst, would cause 3rd degree burns at about 5.4 kilometers, and cause total destruction of ordinary buildings (from blast) out to 4 kilometers. Current day nuclear weapon are LESS powerful than the VERY large weapons from the 50s and 60s- better guidance systems can place the weapon on target within a matter of feet- in the 1960s, it was a matter of miles.
That depends on what you're referring to: The fireball radius (the nuclear explosion itself), the total anhiliation range radius, and etc. For example, the bomb launched on Hiroshima had a fireball of several hundred feet in radius, a 1km total destruction range radius, and severe damage for miles. For firepower bombs (nuclear bombs made for power show & not effectiveness) The Tsar bomba of USSR had 50~55 megatons of TNT firepower, a fireball with 1km+ radius, total destruction for miles, and created a sound shockwave that could be heard in Norway/Other far Northern European areas. Modern nuclear weapons don't have a single blast radius; the U.S. developed M.I.R.V.s (cluster nuclear bombs) that spread apart to create a shotgun blast of multiple nuclear explosions.
"Nuke" is a slang term often used to refer to a nuclear weapon or a nuclear explosion. It can also be informally used to mean destroying something or someone using extreme force or power, similar to the devastating impact of a nuclear blast.
Heat is the obvious choice for controlled use of nuclear energy. In a weapon you also want a blast effect to destroy buildings etc.
The CBRNE agent that causes highly destructive explosions which instantly devastate people and buildings due to extreme heat and impact is a nuclear weapon. It releases a massive amount of energy in the form of a blast wave, thermal radiation, and nuclear radiation, leading to widespread destruction and casualties.
An atomic weapon, also known as a nuclear weapon, is a type of explosive device that releases energy from a nuclear reaction. This reaction can involve the fission (splitting) or fusion (combining) of atomic nuclei, resulting in a powerful blast and release of radiation. Atomic weapons have the potential to cause massive destruction and loss of life.
This really depends on a number of factors, such as the yield of the weapon, the detonation altitude, and the terrain.
The largest nuclear weapon ever tested, the Tsar Bomba by the Soviet Union in 1961, had a blast radius of over 7 miles. The fireball created by the explosion measured around 2 miles in diameter and the shockwave was felt over 400 miles away.
No, a nuclear weapon needs a specific geometry to detonate, and it has to be held in this position by very high explosives to keep it in this shape. In a nuclear reactor, if the reactor core goes critical then the force of the expanding coolant will blow the reactor apart, preventing a nuclear blast.