Humans logo

The True Scale Of Modern Nuclear Weapons

Fire Beyond Imagination: The Weight of Silence in a Single Detonation

By taylor lindaniPublished 7 months ago 10 min read
One flash, and cities vanish—modern nuclear weapons do not merely destroy, they erase. What once took firestorms and fleets now rests in a single warhead, humming quietly with the power to unmake history. In the shadow of their silence lies a truth too vast to measure: that humanity’s genius has outpaced its wisdom, and the scale of ruin fits in the palm of a trembling hand.

Attention we are now at deathcon one security lock down Russian nukes in Space the country recently tested a nuclear capable Hypersonic missile Hypersonic missiles and aircraft could be the future of warfare one of the most powerful nuclear weapons in the world is the b83 nuclear bomb the heavyweight of the US Arsenal weighing about 2,400 lb or 1,100 kg and stretching 12 ft or 3.7 m in length with a diameter of 18 in or 46 cm. It's roughly the size of a small car but within this imposing frame lies a force of unimaginable destruction the b83 is a gravity bomb meaning it's dropped from an aircraft and relies solely on gravity to reach its Target no Rockets or propulsion systems just a Free Falling descent this might sound simple but the devastation it can unleash is anything but carried by strategic bombers like the B2 Spirit stealth bomber and the B-52 Strat Fortress. The b83 can be delivered deep into enemy territory with a blast year field of up to 1.2 megatons of TNT the b83 is approximately 80 times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hoshima which had a yield of about 15 kilotons to put that into perspective imagine the explosive energy of 1.2 million tons of TNT detonating in a single moment. The b83 isn't just about raw power it's designed to penetrate underground bunkers burrowing into the Earth before detonating as for how many of these weapons exist while exact numbers are classified experts estimate that there are about 650 b3s and it is thought there are about 200 b83 bombs in active service, this number has decreased over the years due to Arms reduction treaties and modernization efforts in fact there are plans to retire the b83 altogether in favor of more advanced lower yield nuclear weapons to grasp the true magnitude of the b83 destructive power imagine a single one detonated as an air burst over Beijing China. The immediate Fireball would engulf an area over 4 Square km or 1.5 Square mil vaporizing everything within its radius buildings would collapse within a 7.5 km or 4.6 M radius radius due to the intense blast pressure flattening much of the city center Windows would shatter up to 21 km or 13 M away sending glass shards flying and causing injuries even in distant neighborhoods. The thermal radiation would cause third degree burns to anyone within 13 km or 8 Mi covering an area of over 500 square km or over 200 square miles in terms of human cost such a detonation could result in an estimated 1.5 million immediate fatalities and over 3 million injuries and that's just from a single b83 bomb the United States operates about 76 B52 Strat Fortress bombers which were once capable of carrying up to 8 b83 nuclear bombs however by 2010 us strategic command removed nuclear gravity bombs from The B-52's Arsenal as the aircraft was no longer longer considered capable of surviving modern air defenses today only the US Fleet of 19 B2 Spirit stealth bombers is tasked with delivering nuclear gravity bombs including the b83 with each capable of carrying up to 16 b83 nuclear bombs. This means the potential for Devastation isn't limited to one bomb but could involve numerous simultaneous detonations exponentially increasing the destructive impact in Imagining the true scale of modern nuclear weapons at number four on the list is the Trident 2 missile a Cornerstone of the US and UK nuclear deterrent unlike gravity bombs like the b83 the Trident 2 is a submarine launched ballistic missile or slbm the Trident 2 missile is an engineering Marvel weighing about 59,000 kg or 130,000 lb and stretching 13.5 M or 44 ft in length it's a three-stage solid fuel rocket capable of traveling over 12,000 km or 7,500 mil this incredible range allows it to strike targets virtually anywhere on the globe from submarines hidden deep beneath the ocean's surface what truly sets the Trident 2 apart is its use of multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles or mes each missile can carry up to eight nuclear war heads typically the w88 each with a yield of 475 kilotons that's about 30 times the power of the Hiroshima bomb for each Warhead this means a single Trident 2 missile can deliver devastating blows to multiple targets across a wide area effectively multiplying its destructive capability the missiles guidance system is highly Advanced combining Astro inertial navigation with GPS updates to ensure remarkable accuracy it's capable of hitting within 100 m of its Target after traveling thousands of miles the Trident 2 is deployed on Ohio class submarines for the US Navy and Vanguard class submarines for the Royal Navy providing a stealthy and survivable second strike capability that is crucial for nuclear deterrence to grasp the potential impact of this weapon imagine a single Trident 2 missile launched toward Moscow with all eight Warheads targeting the same area for maximum. Effect the combined explosive yield would be approximately 3.8 megatons of TNT upon detonation as an air burst the immediate Fireball would engulf an area over 10 square km or close to 4 Square Mi vaporizing everything within its radius buildings would be obliterated within an 11 km or closer to 7 m radius flattening much of the city center thermal radiation would cause third Dee Burns to anyone within 22 km or close to 14 M from Ground Zero covering an area of over 1,500 square km or 580 squ mil the human cost would be staggering estimated at over 2.8 million immediate fatalities and 4.6 million injuries and remember this is from just one Trident 2 missile the United States operates 14 Ohio class nuclear submarines each capable of carrying up to 20 Trident 2 missiles that adds up to 280 Trident 2 missiles lurking in the depths of the oceans, with each missile carrying up to eight Warheads at 475 kilotons a piece we're looking at a total of 2,240 nuclear warheads if you calculate the combined explosive power it amounts to an astonishing 1,64 megatons of TNT that's the equivalent of over 70,000 Hiroshima bombs worth of destructive energy concealed Beneath the Sea this immense force is constantly on patrol ready to be Unleashed if ever called upon at number three is China's df5 intercontinental ballistic missile specifically the df5 C variant. This missile is a true giant standing over 106 ft tall and weighing approximately 183 tons first introduced in the 1980s the df5 has remained a Cornerstone of China's nuclear deterrent ever since the df5 has an impressive range of up to 15,000 km or about 9,300 Mi which means it can reach almost any Target on the globe from launch sites within China what makes it particularly formidable is its payload the latest versions like the DF 5B and DF 5c are equipped with mvs allowing them to carry up to 12 nuclear warheads each with a yield of 1 Megaton of TNT to understand the scale remember that the Hiroshima bomb was just 15 kilotons of TNT so each Warhead on the df5 is about 66 times more powerful if all 12 Warheads were directed at the same Target area. The combined explosive power would be a staggering 12 megatons that's 800 times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima let's imagine that a single df5 C missile launched toward Washington DC with all 12 Warheads impacting the same area the fireball would engulf an area with a radius greater than 3 km or 2 miles effectively vaporizing everything in that zone the blast would cause most residential buildings to collapse within a 16 km or close to 10 m radius and third degree burns could affect people up to 35 km or close to 22 M away the human cost would be unimaginable estimated fatalities could exceed 1 million with over 1.8 million more injured what's even more alarming is that this level of Destruction comes from just one df5 missile China is believed to have around 20 to 30 df5 missiles in its Arsenal at number two on the list is the Russian r36 ICBM better known by its NATO designation as the Satan missile developed during the Cold War this missile is one of the most powerful ever built designed to deliver massive nuclear payloads across vast distances the r36 is a colossal missile standing over 32 M or about 106 ft tall and weighing close to a staggering 210,000 kg which is close to half a million pound. It's a two-stage liquid fueled rocket designed to deliver nuclear warheads across continents with an operational range of up to 16,000 km or close to 10,000 mil this means it can reach targets virtually anywhere in the world from launch within Russia what makes the Satan missile particularly fearsome is its payload capacity it can carry up to 10 mes each armed with a nuclear warhead ranging up to one Megaton of TNT this means a single missile can unleash a total explosive yield of up to 10 megatons of TNT about 666 times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima A fitting figure for the Satan missile some variants of the r36 were equipped with a single massive Warhead with a yield of up to 20 megatons that's over 1300 times. The power of the Hiroshima bomb designed to obliterate hardened targets like missile silos and command bunkers now imagine if a single r36 missile were to detonate over San Francisco with a single 15 Megaton Warhead the immediate Fireball would engulf an area over 30 square km or 12 square mil vaporizing everything within a 3 km or close to a 2m radius buildings would be flattened within a 17 km or over 10 m radius decimating much of the Bay Area thermal radiation would cause third degree burns to people up to 40 km or over 24 M away covering an area of nearly 4,800 Square km or 1,850 Square Mi the human toll would be catastrophic estimated fatalities could exceed 1 million with over 1.3 million more injured. This is the impact of just one missile Russia is believed to have around 46 operational r36 M2 vood missiles the most advanced variant of the ss18 each of these missiles can carry multiple Warheads significantly multiplying their destructive potential with such an Arsenal the sheer scale of power held Within These weapons is almost Beyond Comprehension finally at the top of the list is the Russian rs28 samat missile ominously nicknamed the Satan 2 this intercontinental ballistic missile represents the Pinnacle of modern nuclear weaponry developed to replace the Aging r36 M Satan missiles the rs28 samat is designed to evade missile defense systems and deliver massive payloads across the globe the samat is a three-stage liquid fueled missile that weighs over 208 tons and measures over 35 M or about 116 ft in length. It's capable of carrying a variety of Warhead configurations including up to 10 heavy mvs or 15 lighter ones along with Advanced counter measures to bypass missile defenses its range exceeds 18,000 km or over 11,000 Mi allowing it to reach targets anywhere on Earth one of the most concerning features of the rs28 is its ability to utilize a fractional orbital bombardment system or fobs this means the missile can enter a low earth orbit and approach targets from any direction including over the South Pole effectively bypassing traditional early warning systems that are oriented toward the north some reports speculate that the sarmat could theoretically carry a payload of up to 50 megatons equivalent to the Zar bomber the most powerful nuclear device ever detonated while such a massive yield is more hypothetical and not practical for modern military use imagining its potential impact is sobering consider a scenario where a 50 Megaton Warhead is detonated over New York City. The immediate Fireball would engulf an area with a radius of over 5 km or over 3 Mi vaporizing everything within 83 Square km or 32 square Mi the intense blast wave would cause heavy destruction up to 26 km or 16 M away leveling buildings and structures in more than 2,000 square km or close to 800 square mil third degree burns could be inflicted on people up to 60 km or 37 M away covering an area of close to 11,000 square km or over 4,200 Square mil the human toll would be unimaginable estimated fatalities could exceed 7 million people with over 6 million I more injured and this is just from a single rs28 sarmat missile assuming the theoretical payload of 50 megatons of TNT to put this into perspective when the 50 Megaton Zar bomber was detonated in 1961 The Flash was visible as far away as Norway over a th000 km from the test site similarly a 50 Megaton explosion over New York City would be visible with the naked eye all the way to Columbia South Carolina nearly a, kilom away, but what does all this mean for us today? Despite Russia's impressive Arsenal on paper recent events have cast doubt on its true capabilities Russia's new sarmat ballistic missile known as the Satan 2 reportedly blew up during a test launch leaving a massive crater at the site combined with the setbacks and debacles Russia has faced in its aggressor war in Ukraine it seems that Russia might not be as for able as many once thought but merely a paper tiger yet in a full-scale nuclear exchange even a few missiles from Russia's nearly 6,000 nuclear warheads would cause unimaginable damage to the United States but the real challenge isn't about who has the biggest bomb but about ensuring these weapons are never used because in a nuclear war there are no winners only a world left in Ruins where everyone loses.

The true scale of modern nuclear weapons defies comprehension—it is not measured in megatons, but in memories erased before they are made. With the press of a single button, centuries of culture, language, and love could vanish in a sunburst that leaves only shadows etched into stone. These weapons are not tools of defense—they are instruments of oblivion, humming quietly in their silos like sleeping titans. In their silence lies the greatest terror: not rage, but the cold arithmetic of annihilation. The power once reserved for gods now rests in human hands, trembling at the edge of irreversible decisions.

If one warhead can erase a city, what does it say about the world we've built—that such power exists, and we still call it peace? Let me know in a comment section and don't forget to subscribe and like untill next time.

fact or fictionreview

About the Creator

taylor lindani

Reader insights

Be the first to share your insights about this piece.

How does it work?

Add your insights

Comments (1)

Sign in to comment
  • Aleta Dubreuil7 months ago

    The B83 is a beast. Dropped by planes, it packs a 1.2 megaton punch and can penetrate bunkers. Numbers are dropping though.

Find us on social media

Miscellaneous links

  • Explore
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Support

© 2026 Creatd, Inc. All Rights Reserved.