Nuclear Weapon

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Nuclear Weapon

I . Introduction

Nuclear Weapons are explosive weapons that gain their explosive power from nuclear reactions . Nuclear weapons generate much more energy than weapons using chemical explosives such as TNT . Nuclear weapons can be in the form of aerial bombs , artillery shells , or missiles warheads Nuclear devices can be exploded in the atmosphere or on or under a land or water surface

A nuclear explosion immediately creates a luminous fireball consisting of ionized matter . The explosion also creates a powerful blast wave

. In an atmospheric explosion , the fireball rapidly rises and forms a mushroom-shaped cloud . The blast wave moves away from the fireball at supersonic speed and can demolish buildings over large areas . Heat emitted by the fireball can cause serious skin burns and even start fires from a great distance ( HYPERLINK "http /www .questia .com /SM .qst ?act adv contributors Stephen 20J 20Cimba la dcontributors Stephen J Cimbala " Cimbala , 2002 . The explosion also produces highly penetrating nuclear radiation that can cause serious illness or death . Radioactive matter created during the explosion can leave a region virtually uninhabitable for some time

The devastating power of nuclear weapons has twice been unleashed on mankind . On August 6 , 1945 , during the World War II , a United States B-29 bomber dropped a 9 ,000-pound (4 ,082-kg ) nuclear device on Hiroshima , Japan . The explosion of this atomic bomb (as the weapon was called ) resulted in a huge number of deaths - the exact figures are unknown , but estimates range from 68 ,000 to 200 ,000 persons . The city was largely destroyed . On August 9 , a 10 ,000-pound (4 ,536-kg ) nuclear device was exploded over the Japanese city of Nagasaki , with similar results (Tsipis , 2004 . Five days later the Japanese government surrendered , bringing World War II to an end

The purpose of this is to (1 ) get to know the in-depth understanding of what nuclear energy really is (2 ) be aware of how nuclear weapons work and (3 ) be familiar with the effects of nuclear explosions

II . Background

A . Nuclear Energy

Nuclear energy (also called atomic energy , results from the conversion of mass into energy according to Albert Einstein 's formula E mc2 (This is read E equals m c squared ' E represents energy , m mass , and c the speed of light . If the mass is measured in kilograms and the speed of light in meters per second , the result is energy in joules ) The conversion of one kilogram (2 .2 pounds ) of any substance into energy would produce about 9 X 1016 joules , or 25 billion kilowatt-hours , of energy ( HYPERLINK "http /www .questia .com /SM .qst ?act adv contributors Curt 20Gasteyger dco ntributors Curt Gasteyger " Gasteyger , 1999

Nuclear weapon is released when the particles that make up the nucleus (core ) of an atom are rearranged in some manner . As the particles are rearranged , a small portion of the mass of the nucleus is converted into energy . Nuclear energy in large amounts has been produced by two processes - fission and...