The effects of nuclear weapons on a city and the people in it.
Nuclear weapons cause unimaginable death and destruction. Without a doubt, these are the most powerful weapons mankind has ever built. However, there is also a scientific side to this weaponry which Teddy Roosevelt may have indeed called very big sticks.
Nuclear weapons work by releasing the enormous amounts of energy that are contained in the bonds of atoms. The bonds of atoms can be broken in two ways. The first way is by fission, and the second way is by fusion. Fission works by the splitting of atoms with neutrons. To start the reaction, though, an initial kick of energy is needed. This energy kick usually comes from a conventional explosive (Kroenig, “Nuclear Weapon”).
Fission weapons work by inducing a critical mass from a sub-critical mass of one of the two fissile isotopes. The critical mass is induced from either the compression method, or from the gun-barrel method. The gun-barrel method consists of a plug of a fissile isotope and a bullet of the same fissile with explosives behind the bullet. When the explosives detonate, the bullet is smashed into the plug, inducing a critical mass. The compression uses a hollow sphere of a fissile isotope, usually Plutonium-238, that is compressed by conventional explosives. The instant compression of the fissile isotope makes it extremely dense for a split-second, which causes critical mass. The only two fissile isotopes that are able to be fissioned with the fissioned element rereleasing two or more neutrons are Uranium-235 and Plutonium-238. Uranium has the atomic number 92 and, therefore, has 92 protons. Plutonium has the atomic number 94, having 94 protons (Kroenig, “Nuclear Weapon”). “Fission, in physics, is the splitting of the nucleus of an atom into two nearly equal lighter nuclei” (Prigo, “Fission”). When the atoms of a normal element are split, they release only one neutron, but the atoms of Uranium-235 and Plutonium-238 release two neutrons when fissioned. This allows for self-sustaining reactions
Nuclear weapons work by releasing the enormous amounts of energy that are contained in the bonds of atoms. The bonds of atoms can be broken in two ways. The first way is by fission, and the second way is by fusion. Fission works by the splitting of atoms with neutrons. To start the reaction, though, an initial kick of energy is needed. This energy kick usually comes from a conventional explosive (Kroenig, “Nuclear Weapon”).
Fission weapons work by inducing a critical mass from a sub-critical mass of one of the two fissile isotopes. The critical mass is induced from either the compression method, or from the gun-barrel method. The gun-barrel method consists of a plug of a fissile isotope and a bullet of the same fissile with explosives behind the bullet. When the explosives detonate, the bullet is smashed into the plug, inducing a critical mass. The compression uses a hollow sphere of a fissile isotope, usually Plutonium-238, that is compressed by conventional explosives. The instant compression of the fissile isotope makes it extremely dense for a split-second, which causes critical mass. The only two fissile isotopes that are able to be fissioned with the fissioned element rereleasing two or more neutrons are Uranium-235 and Plutonium-238. Uranium has the atomic number 92 and, therefore, has 92 protons. Plutonium has the atomic number 94, having 94 protons (Kroenig, “Nuclear Weapon”). “Fission, in physics, is the splitting of the nucleus of an atom into two nearly equal lighter nuclei” (Prigo, “Fission”). When the atoms of a normal element are split, they release only one neutron, but the atoms of Uranium-235 and Plutonium-238 release two neutrons when fissioned. This allows for self-sustaining reactions