I am doing a project on nuclear chemistry and its relation to nuclear weapons. I am currently at an impasse. I am discussing efficiency in nuclear yield (for example "Little Boy" only yielded 1% efficiency). I want to find out the effects if all 65kg of fissile material in "Little Boy" reacted and detonated. Using Einstein's theory of general relativity E=mc^2, I calculated a theoretical yield of approximately 1.4 gigatons of TNT.
I understand that this is an unfathomable, impossible and impractical amount, and every nuclear yield predictor I have plugged this into doesn't go over anything close to a number this large, which is understandable. I simply want to just have someone who knows what they're talking about, preferably, confirm that a yield of this size would decimate a large country. If anyone knows of a calculator that will take a number this size I would appreciate it as well.
I also have an additional question: does nuclear fallout from a nuclear weapon come from the unreacted fissile material from the bomb that was blown into the atmosphere by the original detonation? I'm just curious, as this would mean that a theoretical nuclear weapon with 100% yield would, although being terribly "world endingly" destructive, would yield no fallout.
Thanks.
I understand that this is an unfathomable, impossible and impractical amount, and every nuclear yield predictor I have plugged this into doesn't go over anything close to a number this large, which is understandable. I simply want to just have someone who knows what they're talking about, preferably, confirm that a yield of this size would decimate a large country. If anyone knows of a calculator that will take a number this size I would appreciate it as well.
I also have an additional question: does nuclear fallout from a nuclear weapon come from the unreacted fissile material from the bomb that was blown into the atmosphere by the original detonation? I'm just curious, as this would mean that a theoretical nuclear weapon with 100% yield would, although being terribly "world endingly" destructive, would yield no fallout.
Thanks.
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While the number you have seems reasonable for if you converted all the mass of the nuclear material into energy that is not what is happening.
The reaction involves the fissioning or fusing of atoms, this process leaves you with atoms leftover after the reaction that cannot be fused or fissioned. The actual energy comes from what is referred to as the mass excess, the difference in the sum of the masses of the atoms before and after the reaction.
The amount of mass excess depends on the isotopes used in the reaction.
So, 100% efficiency in yield would not come close to the number you calculated, it would instead be an amount based on the energy released by the fission or fusion of every possible atom of the used isotope.
As for the fallout, it is a combination of leftover isotopes from the bomb and particles that are picked up by the blast and contaminated by the bomb isotopes. Fallout is only avoidable if the leftover isotopes are not radioactive.
The reaction involves the fissioning or fusing of atoms, this process leaves you with atoms leftover after the reaction that cannot be fused or fissioned. The actual energy comes from what is referred to as the mass excess, the difference in the sum of the masses of the atoms before and after the reaction.
The amount of mass excess depends on the isotopes used in the reaction.
So, 100% efficiency in yield would not come close to the number you calculated, it would instead be an amount based on the energy released by the fission or fusion of every possible atom of the used isotope.
As for the fallout, it is a combination of leftover isotopes from the bomb and particles that are picked up by the blast and contaminated by the bomb isotopes. Fallout is only avoidable if the leftover isotopes are not radioactive.