Nuclear Weapons

Both Russia and the United States possess strong nuclear arsenals with similar destructive capabilities. The exact strength of each country's nuclear weapons is classified, but they both have the ability to cause immense damage and are considered two of the most powerful nuclear states in the world.

Radiation suits are completely fake. Radioactive materials need to be encased in shielding to make sure people are protected from them while being handled. There are often Graded-Z barriers, which are made up of several different compounds that block different radioactive particles generated by a reactor. In addition, workers wear radiation/particle detectors that monitor their radiation exposure.

If 2 nuclear weapons were targeted close together in all probability the first one to detonate would probably kill the other, preventing its proper detonation. This is called nuclear fratricide, it is caused by the burst of neutrons from a nuclear detonation. These neutrons trigger a predetonation fizzle yield in nearby bombs. To prevent this if adjacent targets are too close, the bursts are separated in time instead typically using a marching targeting pattern that proceeds across the area of targets with individual bursts widely separated in time and space.

No, a nuclear bomb is not the biggest bomb. The largest conventional bomb in terms of explosive yield is the MOAB (Massive Ordnance Air Blast), also known as the "Mother of All Bombs." It is a non-nuclear bomb developed by the United States.

A number of improvements have been made in nuclear weapons. They involve the more precise construction (the shape or geometry of the bomb) and the more efficient method of triggering the device. These changes have allowed us to make nuclear weapons that will fit easily in an overnight bag and have permitted us to package numbers of them in a single missile for delivery on multiple targets. All with a minimized probability of a dud, and a maximized (or even a variable) yield.

A nuclear explosion is deadly due to the intense heat and blast wave it generates, causing widespread destruction and casualties. Additionally, the release of harmful radiation can cause long-term health effects such as radiation sickness, cancer, and genetic mutations. The combination of these factors makes nuclear explosions exceptionally destructive and deadly.

Nuclear weapons use nuclear fission reactions, where heavy atomic nuclei, like Uranium-235 or Plutonium-239, split into lighter nuclei, releasing a large amount of energy in the process. This energy release causes a chain reaction, leading to a powerful explosion.

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.

Yes, a supercritical mass of fissile material such as uranium or plutonium can accelerate until a nuclear explosion occurs. When the mass reaches a critical point, a rapid chain reaction takes place, releasing a large amount of energy in the form of heat and pressure, resulting in an explosion.

No, the bomb was built in Los Alamos, NM. However the plutonium used in the Trinity test shot and the Fat Man bomb dropped on Nagasaki was made in reactors at Hanford, WA. The uranium used in the Little Boy bomb dropped on Hiroshima was enriched in Oakridge, TN.

I have seen them as small as 11 inch diameter spheres, 6 inch by 20 inch artillery shells, 6 inch by 32 inch conical ICBM MIRV warheads, to as large as 5 foot diameter by 18 foot long gravity bombs. The first fusion bomb, the 1952 Ivy Mike device was 20 feet in diameter and 80 feet tall with 2 foot thick steel walls (this is the physically largest ever built).

How big/small do you want one? The size is usually limited by the capability of the delivery vehicle used.

Albert Einstein did not invent the nuclear bomb; he was a physicist who played a role in alerting President Roosevelt to the potential of atomic weapons. The atomic bomb was developed and first used during World War II by the Manhattan Project team led by J. Robert Oppenheimer.

The size of the nuclear bomb required to wipe out a nation would depend on the size of the nation and the level of destruction desired. A single high-yield nuclear weapon could devastate a small country, but larger nations would likely require multiple nuclear strikes to achieve total destruction. The use of such weapons would have catastrophic humanitarian and environmental consequences.

They come in several sizes, can be as small as some hundred pounds.

A nuclear bomb can be made with any desired yield from about 10 tons to well over 50 megatons in one single bomb. These numbers are just for tested devices that worked, there is no theoretical upper limit on the yield of fusion based bombs.

A nuclear weapon is one of the most powerful weapons in existence, so it is difficult to say if there is a specific weapon that is definitively stronger. However, some may argue that certain future technologies, such as antimatter weapons or advanced cyber warfare capabilities, could potentially surpass the destructive power of a nuclear weapon.

I assume that you are referring to fallout.

It was only a tiny amount of the total fallout at Hiroshima, but as the mushroom cloud did enter the stratosphere some did travel around the world. Most of the fallout though probably fell back to earth in less than a couple hundred miles.

1. Stan Ulam & Edward Teller had invented a mechanism based on Radiation Implosion that finally made one practical in early 1950.
2. The USSR tested their first atomic bomb in 1949.
3. The start of the Korean war in 1950.
4. McCarthyism & the Red Scare.

During a nuclear explosion, seek shelter immediately in a sturdy building, away from windows, doors, and outside walls. Stay indoors until authorities provide further instructions, as this can help protect you from radiation exposure and fallout particles. If caught outside, find shelter in a dense building or lie flat on the ground and cover your head to reduce exposure.

because it is small is fusable and fissable.

Further answer

It's not used for all atom bombs. In fact the first ones weren't. Uranium and plutonium were the elements used. They were fissile, i.e. capable of sustaining a chain reaction when they split into other elements.

More recently hydrogen was used but this time is fuses to form another element (helium) with a very large release of energy.