Nuclear weapons

10 Kiloton Surface Blast

• 1/3 mile radius: All but the sturdiest of buildings are completely destroyed, those that remain are merely empty shells, fatality rate is nearly 100%
• 3/4 mile radius: Anyone directly exposed to the blast receives a lethal radiation dose, all buildings suffer heavy damages, fatality rate is approximately 50% with 45% injured.
• 1 mile radius: Heat wave causes widespread fires and the area is ravaged by radiation. Approximately 5% of the population is killed, with 45% injured.

25 Megaton Airburst

• 6.5 mile radius: All but the sturdiest of buildings are destroyed, fatality rate is nearly 100%
• 10.7 mile radius: Buildings suffer heavy damage, approximately 50% of the population is dead and 45% injured.
• 20 mile radius: Windows, and many of the occupants of large buildings are blown out, small buildings are heavily damaged or destroyed, approximately 5% dead and 45% injured.
• 30.4 mile radius: Buildings are slightly damaged, approximately 25% of the population is injured.

Construction Feasibility

• To produce a functional gun-triggered nuclear weapon, there are only 4 main requirements.
• Access to a sufficient quantity of weapons grade material, or the equipment needed to enrich uranium ore.
• Precision machine tools.
• Safety equipment to protect against radiation.
• High explosives.

Construction Feasibility

• Due to the widespread availability of resources such as explosives, machine tools, and protective gear, sufficient monetary resources make such items trivial.
• The only real impediment to non-nuclear nations and terrorists is the availability of weapons grade Uranium.

Uranium Acquisition

• Although Uranium is actually fairly common in nature, Uranium-235, the isotope required for nuclear weapons, accounts for only .71% of all naturally occurring Uranium.
• Any sizable amount of Uranium-235 is closely monitored by international agencies, therefore the most feasible means of obtaining weapons grade uranium is to enrich uranium ore.

Uranium Enrichment

• There are several methods to enriching Uranium
• The most efficient method is by combining uranium with fluorine to Uranium hexafluoride and then using a gas centrifuge to separate the isotopes.
• Other methods include electromagnetic isotope separation (EMIS) and gaseous diffusion.
• All of these methods require a significant amount of electricity, some specialized equipment, a larger supply of uranium ore, and a good deal of time, as each process only slightly increases the percentage of U-235, and concentrations of over 90% are necessary for nuclear weapons.

Conclusion

• Nuclear weapons are one of modern science’s greatest achievements, harnessing the conversion of mass to energy.
• They range from fairly simple, to extremely complex, but they all are extremely powerful and deadly.
• Although construction of a basic nuclear weapon is fairly straightforward, the logistical problems involved with obtaining sufficient nuclear fuel, the careful monitoring of nuclear development should prevent terrorists and third world nations from constructing them for quite some time.