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Anyone who survives a nuclear war might count themselves lucky for a few short moments but will probably then wish they were dead.
A new scientific study has revealed how atomic conflict will plunge Earth into a post-apocalyptic ‘winter’ that’s almost too grim to imagine.
Researchers calculated what would happen if the US and Russia launched their nuclear arsenals during a war of mutually assured destruction.
They confirmed that burning cities and forests would throw so much soot into the air that the whole planet would shiver through a freezing ‘nuclear winter’ lasting up to 10 years.
This would blot out the sun’s light, stop crops from growing and cause a ‘global famine’ that could kill billions or even send the whole of humanity into extinction.
A team from Rutgers University and the University of Colorado carried out sophisticated simulations to reveal the severity of a nuclear winter.
They wrote: ‘Massive forest fires ignited by nuclear weapons would rage for weeks after a war, producing a pall of smoke that would obscure the Sun and reduce sunlight at the surface for the duration of the fires.’
‘A nuclear winter could occur from this smoke,’ they added.
‘In a war where nuclear weapons would be used, military and industrial centers located in urban areas would be targeted, which contain fuel loading much higher than forests, thus creating an enormous amount of smoke when burned.
‘Urban fires injecting smoke into the upper troposphere could produce severe climate changes and that urban firestorms could inject smoke into the stratosphere, leading to rapid interhemispheric transport and a long‐lasting smoke pall.’
The simulation suggests ‘surface light levels remain below 40% of normal for 3 years, returning to normal after about 10 years after the war starts’.
This would mean temperatures barely get above freezing in midsummer in many parts of the world, causing a ‘near 90% reduction in the growing season’ and leaving billions at risk of starvation.
The authors called for immediate nuclear disarmament and added: ‘A full‐scale nuclear attack would be suicidal for the country that decides to carry out such an attack.
‘The use of nuclear weapons in this manner by the United States and Russia would have disastrous consequences globally. To completely remove the possibility of an environmental catastrophe as a result of a full‐scale nuclear war, decision-makers must have a full understanding of the grave climatic consequences of nuclear war and act accordingly.
‘Ultimately, the reduction of nuclear arsenals and the eventual disarmament of all nuclear-capable parties are needed.’
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