How to deal with disasters such as World War, earthquakes, etc. ? (Part 1)

The adverse times that Sanatan has been warning about are at our doorstep ! Their impact is going to be more horrific !

• The adverse times that Sanatan has been warning about for some years now are at our doorstep ! The Covid-19 pandemic, which has affected the whole world over the past year, is but a small glimpse of the coming adverse times. The impact of the actual disasters is going to be many times more horrific and inhumane. It will be in different forms – man-made and natural. We will look at some of these problems in this series.
• This series will give an overview of what you can do to protect yourself and your family during these adverse times. The purpose of this series is to make you alert.
• We will have to assume that the use of nuclear weapons in the World War 3 is inevitable. Here, we explain – What is an atomic bomb, How intense it is, What is its effect and how to protect ourselves from it.

1. Types of World War 3 and measures to take to deal with them

1A. Bombing

1A 1. Atom bomb

A nuclear weapon (also known as an atom bomb, atomic bomb, nuclear bomb or nuclear warhead, and colloquially as an A-bomb or nuke) is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or from a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb). Both bomb types release large quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The simplest method for delivering a nuclear weapon is a gravity bomb dropped from aircraft.

1A 1A. The nature of the explosion of an atom bomb

1A 1A 1. What happens when an atom bomb falls ? – The degree of damage depends on the distance from the center of the bomb blast, which is called the hypocenter or ground zero. The closer you are to the hypocenter, the more severe the damage. The damage is caused by several things.

A. When an atom bomb explodes very close to the ground, the explosion lasts less than 0.1 milliseconds. Then a ball of fire 30 metres in diameter and heat of 3 lakh degrees Celsius is generated. This heat is 50 times more than the heat of the sun. This ball of fire gets converted into glowing gas, called ‘fireball’. It emits radioactive matter.

B. The size of this fireball grows at 2 kilometres per 2 seconds. At this time, the pressure created by the air on the ground produces shock waves.

C. The speed of shock waves is greater than the speed of sound. This leads to blowing of winds at a speed of 1,600 kmph on the surface of the earth where such an explosion takes place.

D. The fireball rising up (due to the shock waves) takes the shape of a mushroom in 30 to 35 seconds. This is called a ‘Mushroom cloud’. Clouds of fine radioactive particles of dust and bomb debris that fall back to the ground are called radioactive fallout. In the long term, radioactive fallout occurs over a wider area because of prevailing winds. The duration of this fallout can range from 2 minutes to 24 hours. This fallout period can be used for self-defence.

1A 1A 2. Factors on which the intensity of an atom bomb depends

The intensity of an atom bomb depends on its size, altitude, timing and the atmosphere at the time of the explosion, etc.

Example – A 1 megaton explosion can have a diameter of 2.2 kilometres (10 megatons – 5.5 kilometres in diameter, 20 megatons – 7.4 kilometres).

1A 1B. Types of atom bomb explosions : These are detonated in the following 4 ways.

1. One lakh feet above the ground

2. On or near the ground

3. Underground

4. Underwater

1A 1C. The aftermath of an atom bomb explosion

1A 1C 1. Adverse effects on the environment

A. Evaporation of everything within an area of 0.8 sq. kms. of an atomic explosion

The degree of damage depends upon the distance from the center of the bomb blast, which is called the hypocenter or ground zero.

At the hypocenter, everything is immediately vaporized by the high temperature (up to 500 million degrees Fahrenheit or 300 million degrees Celsius).

B. Huge tremors that shake the earth at the hypocenter, can destroy everything in an area up to 3 sq. kms. and can cause the loss of life and property in an area up to 30 sq. kms.

The detonation of an atomic bomb creates a huge pressure of air (1.76 kg / sq. cm.) and a storm that can be at a speed of more than 510 kmph. At this time, area up to 3 sq. kms. can be destroyed due to huge tremors, while area up to 30 sq. kms. can suffer loss of life and property.

The intensity of this damage depends on the capacity of the bomb.

C. No germination of plants

Plants do not grow for many years in the place where an atom bomb explodes.

1A 1C 2. Adverse effects on human life

A. Extreme heat causes fire, and the smoke from the fire leads to drop in oxygen levels.

The detonation of an atom bomb ignites all inflammable substances beyond an area of 3 kms. and produces huge amounts of smoke, which suffocate people. During this time, the oxygen levels drop, which leads to difficulty in breathing.

Outward from the hypocenter, most casualties are caused by burns from the heat, injuries from the flying debris of buildings collapsed by the shock wave and acute exposure to the high radiation.

Beyond the immediate blast area, casualties are caused from the heat, the radiation and the fires spawned from the heat wave. 50% people get injured completely and 15% people die.

B. Watching an atomic explosion leads to blindness. For some it could be temporary, while some people go completely blind.

C. Radiation can destroy cells in the body, lead to various diseases and birth of physically handicapped children.

Scientists have studied survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings to understand the short-term and long-term effects of nuclear explosions on human health. Radiation and radioactive fallout affect those cells in the body that actively divide (hair, intestine, bone marrow, reproductive organs).

Symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, and disease such as cancer can occur. A few minutes or a few hours or even a few days after the explosion, the radiation can be at its peak; and then the radiation begins to subside. Yet the effects of this radiation can be seen for many years.

The effect of radioactive dust in the aftermath of the atomic bombings on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were experienced for many years. Children born there used were either physically handicapped or sickly.

D. Disruption of public life for decades

Public life is disrupted for decades at the place where atomic explosion takes place.

1A 1C 3. Other side effects

Depending on the capacity of the atomic bomb, it can damage electrical as well as electronic equipment several kilometres from the place of explosion. This can lead to temporary interruption or obstacles.

1A 1D. Massive damage caused by atomic explosion during World War 2

1. The United States detonated two nuclear weapons over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6^th and ^9th August 1945, respectively. The two bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people.

2. 70% buildings were destroyed in both the cities. As a result, a hurricane struck Hiroshima two months later, killing 2,000 people.

The atom bomb has so far been used by the United States only. Today, many countries have nuclear bombs and hydrogen bombs, which are more lethal than atom bombs, and some countries are even openly threatening to use nuclear bombs. In view of this, the significance of being informed about atom /nuclear bomb will be understood.

Please also visit : https://www.sanatan.org/en/natural-disasters-and-survival-guide