You're an aging archaeologist, and let's face
it, your life may have been filled with adventure but you've definitely seen better days. Also some kid just showed up in your life
claiming he's yours and there's rumors he's there to take over your daring adventures
while you sit out in retirement, only problem is this kid has the world's most punchable
face and nobody really likes him. Or the idea of him taking over your iconic
hat and bullwhip. As a matter of fact, EVERYBODY HATES THAT
IDEA. But that doesn't matter right now because
you've been taken hostage by a group of Soviet spies, and in a classic case of wrong place,
wrong time, you're now sitting smack-dab in the middle of a nuclear test area. Suddenly, you see the flash in the distance,
and you know you've got seconds to figure out how to survive a nuclear explosion! Whether you really are a daring archaeologist
stuck in the wrong place at the wrong time, or just an average joe going on about your
life when suddenly Armageddon strikes, worries about how to survive nuclear explosions have
been increasing as the world appears to be swinging back into a new Cold War- only this
time it's between three major powers, not just two. But how in the world do you really survive
a nuclear explosion, and is survival even realistic? The good news is, it's totally possible to
survive a nuclear explosion. The bad news is that for most folks the explosion
isn't what poses the greatest danger, it's the radioactive fallout. But let's take this step by step and figure
out how to save your life in the case of nuclear armageddon. The first key to figuring out your odds of
survival is one critical question: was the detonation an airburst or a groundburst? It may seem like the height at which a nuclear
weapon explodes is largely a moot point, nukes are after all the most destructive weapons
ever created. But the truth is that the difference between
a nuke blowing up at street level, or just a few hundred or thousand feet above street
level can make all the difference. Cities tend to be lousy with buildings, and
even when dealing with the titanic forces of a nuclear explosion, buildings can do a
lot to seriously deflate the explosive potential of a nuke. Row after row of densely packed apartment
complexes and office buildings can all serve to block the explosive power of a nuke, limiting
its destructive potential by as much as fifty percent. The fireball radius where material is instantly
disintegrated can be as much as 25 percent smaller, but the radius where overpressure
causes building collapse is much, much smaller compared to an airburst. Airbursts are designed for maximum destruction,
with the weapon detonating just a few thousand feet above the target. This allows the explosive radius to extend
much further as it's not being blocked by buildings and other terrain obstacles. Deciding which is best for your survival is
a bit of a Sophie's Choice though, as airburst weapons may have a much larger explosive radius,
but actually causes very minimal fallout. By comparison, ground burst detonations have
smaller explosive radius but contribute an order of magnitude more to radioactive fallout. The only reason Japanese citizens continue
to be able to live in the cities of Nagasaki and Hiroshima is because the United States
opted for an airburst over the target. Had the bombs been allowed to detonate on
impact as some had wanted, those two cities would remain as uninhabitable as Chernobyl
to this day. The reason for the disparity in fallout is
because an airburst tends to actually discharge most of its radioactive products into the
uppermost layers of the atmosphere and into space, while a groundburst instantly irradiates
millions of tons of soil and debris which is vaporized and sucked up into the atmosphere,
only to rain back down later like hell's version of snow. Your survival is thus going to depend on which
type of detonation took place, and where you are when the attack happens. A modern weapon such as China's Dong Feng-5
will have a yield of 5 megatons, creating a fireball radius of about 2.5 miles or 3
to 4 kilometers. Anything in this area has zero chance of survival
unless deep underground, as the blast is so intense here that it instantly vaporizes all
material. Past the fireball area, most buildings will
be completely destroyed going out to a further 7.5 mile (12km) radius, as overpressure causes
instant collapse of all but the sturdiest buildings. If you're caught out in the open in this area
it'll be like getting Fus-Roh-Dah'd by an entire army of dragonborn, so enjoy your very
sudden and very short life as a bird before you get squashed into the nearest brick wall. Out to about 15.5 miles (25km) there will
be light building collapse, with most buildings surviving if not completely intact. If you happen to be caught out in the open
though, you'll instantly suffer third degree burns across any exposed areas of your body
and your clothes will likely either melt to your body or burst into flames. Massive fires will soon start and spread very
quickly, further complicating survival. At 21.5 miles (35 km) from the blast zone,
damage caused to buildings will be light, with mostly shattered glass and some roof
collapse. This is the most survivable zone to be in,
so if you're going to be anywhere when Skynet takes over the world, this is where you want
to be. So, how do you survive a nuclear blast? First, you should be aware that because light
travels faster than sound, you're going to see a nuclear explosion before you hear or
feel it. If you happen to be within a few miles of
the blast and are unlucky enough to be staring in its direction, your retinas will be seared
like tuna steaks, and it'll be the last thing you don't see. If you're further out and a blast happens,
you may be tempted to immediately rush to a window and be a total lookie-loo, which
would be a very bad idea. The overpressure wave will be rapidly moving
towards your direction, and a few seconds after the blast it's going to wash over you. If you're on the other side of a pane of glass
or standing outside, you'll be showered in debris and shattered glass. You might be thinking about the old cold war-era
civilian protection films from the US like the famous duck and cover film showing a turtle
teaching school kids how to survive a nuke. Well, it may be cheesy and corny, but the
truth is that ducking and covering is the best way to survive a nuke- given you're actually
in a survivable zone. Ducking low to the ground will help you avoid
flying debris if you're caught out in the open, and covering yourself with anything
available will help protect against debris and the thermal flash which will cook your
flesh like barbeque. Finding a sturdy desk to hide under is your
best go-to if you're in doors, as the greatest danger in the survivable blast zone is building
collapse. In essence, the same strategies to survive
a major earthquake come into play with nuclear weapons- find something sturdy and get underneath
it. If you're caught out in the open, cover your
head and neck with your hands and bury your face in the dirt. Ideally you want to lay with your feet towards
the blast, because your head is more important for survival than your feet. The real trick to surviving a nuclear attack
though is not the initial blast, but rather the immediate aftermath. Depending on the type of attack- ground versus
airburst- you'll have anywhere between 5 and 30 minutes before fallout starts, well, falling
out of the sky all around you. These fission byproducts are extremely dangerous,
and will ruin your day faster than telling shaggy his meme is dead. You might be tempted to run for it immediately
after the blast subsides, just hop in your car and outdrive the nuclear fallout. Disturbingly, in some polls a great deal of
Americans had the same idea. The problem is that roads are either going
to be destroyed or choked with debris, or filled with thousands of people who all had
the same idea you did. Also, atmospheric winds can move much faster
than a car, giving you no chance of outrunning them if you're traveling in the same direction. The best survival strategy is the same one
the US government has been preaching for decades- shelter in place. You want to find a sturdy shelter and get
inside it as soon as possible. Something underground is ideal, but if your
building doesn't have a basement then simply try to put as much distance and barriers between
yourself and the outside world as possible. Try to keep in mind the basic safety principle
behind nuclear power: time, distance, and shielding. As you increase either of those factors, you
increase your odds of survival. Gathering in the core of a large building
will offer great protection from fallout, adding both distance and shielding. Surprisingly, if you live in a particularly
tall building, the higher up you go the better your odds of surviving the fallout- if of
course your building doesn't have a basement. This only works on buildings higher than 6
stories though, as they rise above the prevailing height of ground winds pushing atomized radioactive
debris around. Once you've accomplished distance and shielding,
the next step is time. You want to wait between 12 and 24 hours,
but the longer you wait the better. That's because the most dangerous radioactive
isotopes have very short half-lifes and will quickly decay, so the longer you're able to
shelter in place, the better. Once it's time to move out though, you'll
want to protect yourself from the greatest danger of a post-nuclear attack: ingestion
of radioactive fallout. This low-level fallout doesn't pose any real
threat to your health unless it is accidentally ingested, so try and fashion some protective
face masks to filter out the air you breathe. Even just wetting a t-shirt and tying it around
your nose and mouth can help keep this dangerous breathable fallout from getting into your
body. Your best bet though is to avoid traveling
altogether, adding further time to your safety equation. Shelter in place for as long as you can, which
means that you need to be prepared for an emergency so you're able to do so. The US government recommends having at least
a few days worth of food and water. Water, as you likely know, is far more important
than food- while you can survive around a month without food, you can only go three
days without drinking water. So keep an emergency stash on hand, remembering
that the average human needs one gallon of water per day. Non-perishable foods can help you weather
the immediate aftermath of a nuclear attack. Things like canned goods, dehydrated foods,
and even pickled items can last a long time and make for great emergency rations. You can easily buy military MREs, or meal-ready-to-eat,
online, and two of those contain more than enough calories to keep you going for a day-
though these specialized meals are so energy rich that a single one is enough for the average
adult human. Next, the US government recommends that you
have a way of keeping informed in the aftermath of a nuclear attack. The EMP blast will likely destroy any surviving
cell or internet infrastructure, though you might be surprised to learn that the internet
is humanity's most resilient communications network given the fact that it's so widely
dispersed. However, huddling in your shelter still within
the city limits of a nuclear attack, you're far better served with a satellite or shortwave
radio. It will be important to be able to get further
instructions from your local government authorities, who will be coordinating a rescue and relief
effort. Certain conditions like rain storms can actually
make the fallout effect more dangerous, so even just having access to basic weather forecasts
can be a lifesaver. Like many things in life, surviving a nuclear
attack is largely a matter of timing and location. If you're in the wrong place at the wrong
time, there's little chance of survival for you, but even as destructive as these fearsome
weapons are, the fact is that most people would survive a nuclear attack on their city. In a city like Los Angeles for instance, a
nuclear attack could kill 1.5 million out of a population of 4 million, but if your
city is less densely packed, your odds of survival are much greater. Just whatever you do, don't think you can
survive a nuclear explosion inside a refrigerator. Want to know what a real nuclear war would
look like? Then check out What if there was a nuclear
war between the US and Russia, or perhaps you'd prefer this other video instead. Either way, click one now before Skynet destroys
us all!
