Dublin would be completely destroyed and hundreds of thousands killed if a nuclear weapon were to hit Ireland.
The scary prospect comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin scaled up the military attack on Ukraine and said he was "not bluffing" about the use of nuclear weapons. He announced yesterday he had signed a decree stating that Russian reservists will be conscripted into the country's military in what is Russia's first mobilisation since World War Two.
An interactive map called NUKEMAP, created by Alex Wellerstein, a historian of nuclear weapons, shows how areas would be affected if a nuclear bomb were to hit it. It allows you to choose from a range of nuclear weapons that have already been used or tested.
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The Topol (SS-225) is among Russia's arsenal and was chosen to see how such an attack would impact Dublin. It can deliver a payload of 1,000 kg to a range of 11,000 km.
What would happen
If it were to hit Dublin city centre it could kill an estimated 337,700 people and injure a further 482,250. The impact would travel within an 18.4km radius meaning suburban areas such as Tallaght, Dun Laoghaire and Blanchardstown would also be devastated.
Those living within 0.88 km of the blast which would be within the ‘fireball radius’. The map explains anything inside the fireball is effectively vaporized.
Moderate damage is the term used for those living within 6.53km of the bomb. Areas included here include Dundrum, the Phoenix Park and Ballymun. This is described as: “Most residential buildings collapse, injuries are universal, fatalities are widespread. The chances of a fire starting in commercial and residential damage are high, and buildings so damaged are at high risk of spreading fire.”
Blanchardstown, Dublin Airport and Tallaght and other areas within 11.1km of the blast would be in the ‘thermal radiation radius’. This would see: “Third degree burns extend throughout the layers of skin, and are often painless because they destroy the pain nerves. They can cause severe scarring or disablement, and can require amputation.”
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The last areas that would be damaged are within 18.4km of the blast and would see ‘light damage’. This includes the likes of Lucan and Malahide, as well as parts of Meath, Kildare and Wicklow. The map explains: “At a around 1 psi overpressure, glass windows can be expected to break. This can cause many injuries in a surrounding population who comes to a window after seeing the flash of a nuclear explosion (which travels faster than the pressure wave). Often used as a benchmark for light damage in cities.”
The only two times nuclear weapons have been dropped on inhabited areas was in 1945, when the US detonated two nuclear weapons over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. As many as 226,000 people were killed in the atrocity. You can try the map for yourself here.
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