What can you do: Nuclear War? Part 1

From an historical standpoint in the 1950’s there was a serious panic about the (then) Soviet Union attacking the United States with nuclear missiles. There was no defense at that time but building bomb shelters in the back yard. Cities and towns opened their basements as fallout shelters, and geiger counters were a hot item to purchase. Dried food storage was common. Washington DC built many “caves” in the surrounding countryside for their political leaders and stocked them with foods and necessities. Even today these caves exist and were recently restocked with “survival foods”. Could this be an omen?

Civilian movies were quick on the uptake as “Doom and Gloom, End of the Earth, and Adam and Eve” scenarios. The Department of Defense released clips of the nuclear test blast effects on buildings, cars, pets, and of course mannequin people blast effects. Gosh! It was scary. What was worse was the political hyperbole about Hydrogen Bomb effects in the Pacific atolls that were evaporated. If you view one of these actual film clips observe the WWII junked battleships, cruisers, and other ships, like specks in the films, just sucked up in the funnel of water. This was even scarier.

This scare tactic was carried on into the 1960’s and even an Atomic Doomsday clock was set up for more scare tactics. The Soviet Union had created 50 mega ton warheads on their missiles that could erase Washington DC, San Francisco, Los Angeles, etc. The United States in counter warfare scenarios developed an “Air-Sea-Land” defense system and counter attack with Nuclear tipped submarine Trident missiles, Minutemen silos and B52 bombers always in the air and always on patrol. Yes, more movies to keep you up at night.

Even grade school children were not immune to the possibility of a nuclear exchange. Students were told to crawl under their respective desks, or march off holding hands to the basement. Atom Bomb movies were introduced, yet in 1947 I recall schools promoted the “new nuclear age of food abundance, new science, new medicines”. Three years later it was doom and gloom.

President Kennedy was embroiled with Premier Khrushchev of the Soviet Union about supplying Cuba with missiles and there was a serious confrontation in the Caribbean standoff.

Although much of this was saber rattling, from a realistic standpoint there was nothing any civilian could do. Today, there is still little we can do as civilians. Perhaps there is not a real concern as Russia missiles as a First Strike are aimed at our military complexes, maybe the Capital, the Pentagon, and the recently reopened Cheyenne Mountain complex of central command. While in the mean time as a follow up strike our missiles are aimed at the Russia cities. There is little in the change of tactics since 1960 except technology of building bigger and better, faster, and undetectable implements of war.

The old 1950’s scenario was “point and shoot” with gyroscope aiming. Today we use, as Russia, North Korea, China, Pakistan, India, France and the UK does: Satellite control guidance. These precision satellites control missiles launched aboard ships, submarines, airplane bombers, cruise missiles and the dreaded Inter Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBM) that carry the multi-megaton war heads.

These ICBM’s also carry radar interception, decoys, in a cluster of the dispersed warhead missiles. These missiles are defined as a Multiple Reentry Vehicle( MRV’s).

With satellites these are big, very big possible weapons carrying instruments of war providing the military a push button response to fire a missile directly down towards a target. These satellite missiles may destroy enemy satellites, a nuclear strike over a city, or create an EMP-currently in the news- that wipes out our electrical grid for years.

The yield of these warheads can be classed as strategic, or tactical, dependent on the target.

The older silo system of basing independent ICBM’s in silos under ground, usually in Nebraska, Montana and remote locations is now considered an obsolete system. Silo fired ICBM’s take about 30 minutes to strike a target across the ocean. Furthermore their exists defensive missiles to shoot down the ICBMs. Satellite controlled nuclear missiles, firing from the satellite itself is a matter of a few minutes, probably 3 minutes. Either way the emergency broadcasting system warning you of a strike is just not going to happen.

There exist carefully worded treaties concerning satellite weaponry, but who really lives up to treaties in a war situation? War is a terrible total destruction of their infrastructure, economic collapse, and death to an enemy.

To gain the most effectiveness of the missile explosion is at about 1500 feet, this is called an air blast. This is employed in troop concentrations, building destruction from blast, fire, and radiation. Shipping ports and facilities for submarines and ships; Norfolk, Charleston and May port comes to mind. Washington D.C would be a First Strike. What is in your hometown?

Surface blasts although not as destructive to property promote more radioactivity particles that reduce entry for perhaps years. Nuclear electrical power installations across the United States would be a likely target. Enter now the food production areas in various states saturated with radiation for the next thousand years- maybe 20,000 years -depending upon the weapon yield and type of fissionable material.

Sub-surface blasts are for underground damage to deep bunkers, science labs, weapons, food and survival storage, water impoundments like Hoover Dam, Strategic hardened military installations such as Cheyenne Mountain. Perhaps the hardened caves for politicians and Government scientists around Washington DC would also be a secondary target.

Now you may envision what Total Nuclear War is all about. Civilization ceases to exist. Government ceases to exist. Food production ceases to exist. Hospitals cease to exist. Military ceases to exist. Roads and infrastructure ceases to exist. Millions of people vanish in the fire storms, millions die of radiation, and millions are left with survival- a grim survival- that is not like the movies. Most will not make it. This is total war.

However there is limited war. This could be in the Middle East: North Africa, Syria, Iraq, Liberia, Lebanon, Turkey, Iran, and Saudi Arabia, with assorted third world desperate nation-states. Israel would be involved, as would Iran. These states have been in conflict since Ramses II from ancient Egypt. Limited warfare in the Middle East Desert would most likely be fought with tactical nuclear warheads from cruise missiles, and USA Howitzer Gunnery shells. Nuclear land mines and sea mines might also be employed. The yield may be in Kilo Tons, or MEGA Tons (1MEGA Tons is the equivalent of 1,000,000 tons of TNT). 1 Kilo of fissionable material is the equivalent of 1 ton of TNT.

This would impact on our economy, as the basis of all the war(s) being fought currently in that region are based upon OIL. Europe would suffer as well as the United Kingdom. However, remember war, not fought on your landscape, boosts the stock market.

Currently the threat from the Hermit Kingdom of North Korea is their technology advance: notably with ICBM missiles and nuclear weapons. There is reason to believe that they possess Hydrogen Bomb technology. Within a few short years Iran will have nuclear weapons as well as Saudi Arabia, the archenemy of each other who may already have a nuclear device. Israel has nuclear weapons and state to be a defense retaliatory weapon against Iran. Currently Iran is purchasing Russian bombers and China’s fighter aircraft. Iran is also purchasing the Russian 3000 radar system that is the worlds most advanced multipurpose weapons system interface. Saudi Arabia has ordered fighter aircraft from the USA. Pakistan and India, both having nuclear weapons, are constantly at each other’s throats.

The below table is an idea of how bad a terrorist threat can be, with a backpack. This would be a surface blast with residual radiation.

Consider the following destruction table, for a terrorist’s suitcase RDD damage, keeping in mind that a one-kilo nuclear blast is equivalent to one ton of TNT, hence a Kilo Ton.

Weapon Effect Weapon Yield (Kiloton/Distance in meters)
1 KT 10KT 100KT 1000KT
————————————————————————————————————Blast (50% casualties) 140m 360m 860m 3,100m

Thermal Radiation 370m `1,100m 3,190m 8,020m
50% deep burn

Ionizing radiation 600m 950m 1,400m 2,900m
50% ineffective treatment

Ionizing radiation sure death 800m 1,100m 1,600m 3,200m

There appears not to be a solution by peaceful means such as negotiating across the table and the world is closer to some form of war.

Our next article will propose scenarios about your “what to do” for a nuclear exchange, terrorist dirty bombs, and of course where to bug out to.

May God Bless you and keep you. Live long and prosper.

Old Timer

Copyright: Back2theLand.com, all rights reserved. 2-11-2016