*Answers to Nuke Test #2*
1. After an air burst, one should plan to shelter for at least 2 weeks while fallout levels die down.
False - airbursts don't generate enough fallout to worry about...but how would you know? The 2 week thing is a byproduct of the 7/10 rule, after 14 days you will have a drop of
1000X...enough to be considered safe for a majority of iostopes.
2. HEPA filters are needed in Shelter air intake vents to filter out radiation from fallout.
False - they will work great but are overkill, most fallout is large enough in size to be filtered out with a tshirt or other screen. The particles small enough to need a HEPA filter won't come down for a while and will be cold(er) when they do.
3. The body is better able to handle an acute dose (instant dose) of radiation than a long term dose.
False - An accute does of 600 R/Hr will kill, but 600 Rads over a life time will not. The body
can repair the damage done by radiation over time, whereas an acute dose destroys too many cells to recover from. (Agreed, that one was worded tricky, I'll do better, but that's how
much of research material is worded, so you have to be careful and know the terms)
4. Genetics plays little role in the body's ability to handle doses of radiation.
FALSE FALSE FALSE, ITS ALL IN THE CODE BABY!!!!!!!!!!.
5. If your group accumulates an hour's dose of radiation at 600R/Hr, you can expect half of
the group to die within 2 weeks.
False - Everyone would die within two weeks, no exceptions. 0.3 R/Hr seems to be "the
magic number" we were looking for where the majority of people could work in in it indefinitely
with no sickness (see also #3)
6. After a ground burst, Water in streams will be unsafe to drink for several months.
False - it will be washed away, and if not it can be settled/filtered out. Ingestion of A/B particles is a concern so I'd distill it if I had to drink it. And 7/10 still applies
Addition: water CANNOT be contaminated by radiation, only dirt particles in the water. Fallout
is much heavier than water.. after a few hours of settling, the top 3/4ths of the water is safe to drink. Experts say that even if the water is allowed to settle 10 minutes, no "immediate"
effects of radiation would strike if you had to drink it.
7. If a 2 Kiloton burst destroys everything withing half a mile, then a 2 megaton burst will
destroy everything within 20 miles.
False - the increase in total volume of explosive power (4/3 piR^3) but the effects on the
ground are a function of the diameter/blast footprint of the explosion (piD) and are not equal to one another, ie a doubling of volume does not correlate to a doubling of the blast footprint by a long shot.
8. During times of tension, You can expect about 30 minutes warning from civil Defense
authorities before a nuke attack.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Addition: There is no civil defense system any more.
9. If a nuke attack is expected, you can monitor EBS alerts on your weather radio.
True - EBS alerts "of magnitude" are broadcast on Weather alert Radios.
10. It would take about 20 nuclear weapons in the 2 megaton range, burst high in the
atmosphere, to knock out electronics over the whole USA.
False - one should do it
Addition: and most of Canada and Mexico
11. After an atmospheric burst of 2 megatons, it would be safe to leave your shelter within a day.
True - but I wouldn't.
12. A basement shelter with concrete or brick walls will protect you from the blast of a nearby nuclear weapon.
False - Basement shelters are only good for fallout, they are NOT (and cannot be) built for
blast over-pressures.
13. There will be fires raging up to a half mile from any ground burst.
False the blast wave will put out most fires, but secondaries from gas mains can be
expected.
14. A MASSIVE nuclear war would cause a "Nuclear winter" which would block out the sun for a minimum of two years.
Yes Mr Segan...thats exactly right... NOT!
15. A 2 megaton ground burst would create a circular pattern of fallout that can stretch for
over 50 miles.
False - fallout patterns aren't circular, they are eliptical and dependent on wind direction. and can travel much farther than that depending on wind speed.
Hint... The answers for these tests can be found in articles on the Alpha/Rubicon Site!
Warlord & Dbrown
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