Worst Places to Survive a Nuclear War in the U.S. 11-13-2024, 10:31 PM
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Amid heightened nuclear tensions as the Russia-Ukraine war continues to rage on, many have questioned the chances of a nuclear war and the best and worst places to be located if one were to break out.
U.S. President Joe Biden recently warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin "is not joking" when discussing the possible use of nuclear weapons. "I don't think there's any such thing as the ability to easily use tactical nuclear weapons and not end up with Armageddon," Biden said this month.
In September, Putin warned other nations that Russia will "use all defense methods at our disposal" if the country felt threatened, adding "this is not a bluff." One of Putin's allies, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, also recently suggested the use of a "low-yield nuclear weapon" in connection to the conflict in Ukraine.
According to data from the Federation of American Scientists, Russia currently owns the most nuclear warheads in the world, with 5,977, while the U.S. has 5,428. The Federation of American Scientists also said that "of the world's 12,700 nuclear warheads, more than 9,400 are in the military stockpiles for use by missiles, aircraft, ships and submarines."
Newsweek recently spoke with experts about some of the worst places to be located if a nuclear war were to break out in the U.S.
Fallout Shelter and Nuclear bombs
In this inset image, a nuclear test is pictured in 1957 next to a leftover fallout shelter sign, one of hundreds in New York, displayed on a building on August 11, 2017, in New York...
Galerie Bilderwelt/Getty; Spencer Platt/Getty
Potential Targets
While speaking with Newsweek on Thursday, Dinshaw Mistry, a professor of international affairs and Asian studies at the University of Cincinnati, explained that the "worst place to be located is the place most likely for a nuclear strike."
"The worst place would essentially be strategic targets, such as military and missile bases...bases are basically in the proximity of populated centers, whether it's cities or towns," Mistry said. "The worst place is essentially population centers near naval facilities, military bases, strategic air command bases."
However, Mistry noted that a "major population center" in the U.S., such as New York City or California, "may actually not be the target of nuclear strike."
Kathryn A. Higley, an Oregon State University professor in the School of Nuclear Science, told Newsweek that some other potential targets could be infrastructure such as power plants or fuel storage centers.
Worst Places to Be
Mark R. StJ. Foreman, an associate professor at Chalmers University of Technology in Göteborg, Sweden, made similar comments while discussing some of the worst possible places to be located if a nuclear bomb was sent to the U.S.
"I would argue that the best place to be during a nuclear attack is in a place where you are not affected by direct effects such as heat and blast and you also have very little fallout radioactivity deposited on your land," Foreman told Newsweek. "If you were outside in an exposed place near a large nuclear detonation then it would be over in a few seconds—you would be likely to be heated by the infrared light from the bomb. This would cause serious burns, and within seconds you would be hit by the blast wave, which would be likely to kill you."
Higley also said that the worst place to be located would be "adjacent" to where the device detonates. According to Higley, if you are located at the spot targeted, you are likely dead very quickly and if you are nearby, you may suffer from thermal and radiation effects, prior to death.
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U.S. President Joe Biden recently warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin "is not joking" when discussing the possible use of nuclear weapons. "I don't think there's any such thing as the ability to easily use tactical nuclear weapons and not end up with Armageddon," Biden said this month.
In September, Putin warned other nations that Russia will "use all defense methods at our disposal" if the country felt threatened, adding "this is not a bluff." One of Putin's allies, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, also recently suggested the use of a "low-yield nuclear weapon" in connection to the conflict in Ukraine.
According to data from the Federation of American Scientists, Russia currently owns the most nuclear warheads in the world, with 5,977, while the U.S. has 5,428. The Federation of American Scientists also said that "of the world's 12,700 nuclear warheads, more than 9,400 are in the military stockpiles for use by missiles, aircraft, ships and submarines."
Newsweek recently spoke with experts about some of the worst places to be located if a nuclear war were to break out in the U.S.
Fallout Shelter and Nuclear bombs
In this inset image, a nuclear test is pictured in 1957 next to a leftover fallout shelter sign, one of hundreds in New York, displayed on a building on August 11, 2017, in New York...
Galerie Bilderwelt/Getty; Spencer Platt/Getty
Potential Targets
While speaking with Newsweek on Thursday, Dinshaw Mistry, a professor of international affairs and Asian studies at the University of Cincinnati, explained that the "worst place to be located is the place most likely for a nuclear strike."
"The worst place would essentially be strategic targets, such as military and missile bases...bases are basically in the proximity of populated centers, whether it's cities or towns," Mistry said. "The worst place is essentially population centers near naval facilities, military bases, strategic air command bases."
However, Mistry noted that a "major population center" in the U.S., such as New York City or California, "may actually not be the target of nuclear strike."
Kathryn A. Higley, an Oregon State University professor in the School of Nuclear Science, told Newsweek that some other potential targets could be infrastructure such as power plants or fuel storage centers.
Worst Places to Be
Mark R. StJ. Foreman, an associate professor at Chalmers University of Technology in Göteborg, Sweden, made similar comments while discussing some of the worst possible places to be located if a nuclear bomb was sent to the U.S.
"I would argue that the best place to be during a nuclear attack is in a place where you are not affected by direct effects such as heat and blast and you also have very little fallout radioactivity deposited on your land," Foreman told Newsweek. "If you were outside in an exposed place near a large nuclear detonation then it would be over in a few seconds—you would be likely to be heated by the infrared light from the bomb. This would cause serious burns, and within seconds you would be hit by the blast wave, which would be likely to kill you."
Higley also said that the worst place to be located would be "adjacent" to where the device detonates. According to Higley, if you are located at the spot targeted, you are likely dead very quickly and if you are nearby, you may suffer from thermal and radiation effects, prior to death.
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