Have you ever wondered just what would happen if an atomic bomb was dropped over London?
Well one nuclear historian, Alex Wellerstein, who works at the Sevens Institute of Technology, decided to create a map so we could do exactly that.
The ‘Nuke Map’ of the world shows what would happen if various bombs were dropped on London, from Fat Man, which was dropped over Nagasaki, to Tsar Bomb, which is the largest in the world.
It’s seriously interesting, but also quite disturbing at the same time.
Little Boy
In 1945, when the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, it killed 66,000 and injured 69,000, causing horrific destruction, but if dropped over London 90,230 would be dead, with 272,380 injured.
Fat Man
The bomb that caused destruction when detonated over Nagasaki killed 39,000 and injured 25,000, but if it was set off over London, the death toll would be even higher, with over 110,000 dead and 279,520 injured.
Ivy King
The 500 kiloton bomb is the largest pure fission weapon tested by the USA, and 453,370 people would die and 835,570 if set off over London, with the people of East Anglia also having serious issues. Very serious issues indeed.
North Korea
This would kill nearly 70,000 people in London and injure 259,350 – and given it was North Korea’s latest nuclear weapon test and is 10 kiloton bomb, let’s hope Kim Jong-un doesn’t decide to launch it any time soon.
Davey Crockett
At 20 kilotons, this is the smallest bomb in the USA, and would kill 360 people if set off in London. While a far smaller amount than any of the other bombs, it would still cause destruction and death, with around 3,190 also getting injured.
Tsar Bomba
This is the current biggest bomb in the world at 50 megatons, and would kill nearly 6 million in London and injure nearly 3.5 million.
Tsar Bomba (biggest designed)
It was never made, but it was designed, and the 100 megaton bomb would kill 5,920,300 and injure 6,048,100 if it was to go off in London.
In case you wanted to have a look at the nuke map, you can do so here.
