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tdgros t1_iuedlw7 wrote

you can test it here: https://nuclearsecrecy.com/nukemap/ you can use the actual tested Tsar Bomba at 50MT, or the 100MT one! With that last one set off over San Francisco, there is "moderate blast damage" up to Santa Cruz, so a radius a bit below 60 miles, but you do get 3rd degree burns until 50 miles! So it is very, very far from covering all of California, but still gigantic

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zean_rm t1_iuemohv wrote

I imagine that simulation does not account for topography. The Bay Area is very hilly and I imagine the effect of a detonation would look very different than if executed on a flat plain

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destuctir t1_iueqq4q wrote

If I recall, the Tsar was supposed to be 100MT originally but the scientists intentionally fabricated the calculations to use less material and make it 50MT, the reason being they did math and suspected a 100MT bomb detonated at the intended testing site would ignite the ozone layer and they feared it burning an enormous hole

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tdgros t1_iuerkbf wrote

There are similar stories about the very first atomic bomb test. There was never any real worry though. Do you have a source for this tsar Bomba claim?

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