What Would Happen If We Nuked The Moon

 

Popular Mechanics: Watch What Would Happen If We Nuked the Moon 

Yes, the Air Force actually once wanted to do this. 

 * A new video shows what would happen if we detonated a nuclear weapon on the moon. 

 * The lack of an atmosphere would make a nuclear explosion on the moon significantly different than one on Earth. 

 * During the Cold War, the U.S. Air Force actually thought about doing it as a show of scientific progress and, yes, a show of force.

A new video from the YouTube science channel Kurzgesagt tackles a very serious question: What would happen if we nuked the moon? 

The science channel runs down a scenario in which a massive thermonuclear device is detonated on the surface of the moon, and what that would mean for astronaut observers, orbiting satellites and space stations, and even people on Earth.

Read more .... 

WNU Editor: Not a good idea.

You Can Now See What A Nuclear Detonation Over Manhattan Looks Like In This New VR Simulation

Nukemap VR simulates a nuclear bomb explosion in New York City to educate people about atomic weapons. Christopher Manzione; Reinventing Civil Defense/Stevens Institute of Technology

Business Insider: I just nuked Manhattan in a realistic new VR simulation, and the experience changed how I understand the bomb

* Nukemap VR is a new virtual-reality experience that lets users detonate a nuclear weapon in New York City.
* The simulation is designed to educate the public about the scale and scope of atomic explosions.
* The project is part of a $500,000 project called Reinventing Civil Defense at the Stevens Institute of Technology, which aims to "restore a broad, cultural understanding of nuclear risk."
* Future iterations of Nukemap VR, which is based on the interactive Nukemap tool, may let users simulate any nuke and location in the world.

Nuking the city of New York was terrifyingly easy and disturbingly informative.

From the bank of the Hudson River in Hoboken, New Jersey, while gazing out at the Manhattan skyline, I simply moved my hand over a giant red button, and then pushed it in.

A bright white flash temporarily blinded me. About half a second later, a deafening blast akin to 1,000 thunderclaps pounded my ears. Next came an ominous and murmuring roar: the audible lingering aftermath of the nuclear explosion. The noise bounced around the area for what seemed like an eternity, yet was no more than a minute.

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WNU Editor: It looks like they still have a lot of work to do on this simulation. But once the rough edges are smoothed out, this simulation should be watched by everyone.

This Former RAF Pilot Dropped Two Nuclear Bombs In His Career

Alan Pringle: ‘My feeling was, it was a weapon of war.’ Photograph: Fabio De Paola for the Guardian

The Guardian: Experience: I dropped two nuclear bombs

The sky lit up; 10,000ft above our eye level was a writhing molten mass. I was in awe.

I became aware of Operation Grapple in July 1956. There wasn’t a big Top Secret stamp on it. Everyone in the country had an idea that Britain was trying to become a nuclear power. I was a 22-year-old co-pilot in the RAF, just happy to be chosen for the mission.

My main role was to monitor the flight instruments to make sure the captain was flying correctly. We practised dummy drops for months, flying Valiant bombers from Wittering airbase on the Cambridgeshire/Northamptonshire border to a range over Orford Ness.

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WNU Editor:  Yup .... there was a time when they tested these devices by dropping them from the air.