Nuclear summer

Nuclear summer


A Nuclear summer is a hypothetical scenario resulting from nuclear warfare that would follow a nuclear winter, caused by aerosols inserted into the atmosphere that would prevent sunlight from reaching lower levels or the surface. In this scenario, following the settling out of most of the aerosols in 1–3 years, the cooling effect would be overcome by a heating effect from greenhouse warming, which would raise surface temperatures rapidly by many degrees, enough to cause the death of much if not most of the life that had survived the cooling, much of which is more vulnerable to higher-than-normal temperatures than to lower-than-normal temperatures. The nuclear detonations would release CO2 and other greenhouse gases from burning, followed by more released from decay of dead organic matter. The detonations would also insert oxides of nitrogen into the stratosphere that would then deplete the ozone layer around the Earth. This layer screens out UV-B radiation from the Sun, which causes genetic damage to life forms on the surface. As the temperature rises, the amount of water in the atmosphere would increase, causing further greenhouse warming of the surface, and if it rose enough, it could cause the sublimation of methane clathrate deposits on the sea floor, releasing huge amounts of methane, a greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere, perhaps enough to trigger runaway climate change.

Other more simplistic versions of the hypothesis exist: that Nuclear winter might give way to a nuclear summer. The high temperatures of the nuclear fireballs could destroy the ozone gas of the middle stratosphere.[1]

See also

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • nuclear summer — noun A period, hypothesised to follow a nuclear winter, in which surface temperatures rise to a dangerous degree …   Wiktionary

  • Nuclear winter — For other uses, see Nuclear winter (disambiguation). Nuclear weapons History Warfare Arms race Design Testing …   Wikipedia

  • Nuclear weapon — A bomb redirects here. For other uses, see A bomb (disambiguation). The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan on August 9, 1945 …   Wikipedia

  • Nuclear-powered icebreaker — Nuclear icebreaker Yamal on its way to the North Pole in August 2001 A nuclear powered icebreaker is a purpose built ship for use in waters continuously covered with ice. Icebreakers are ships capable of cruising on ice covered water by breaking… …   Wikipedia

  • Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty — Treaty on the Non Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Participation in the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty …   Wikipedia

  • Nuclear warfare — Nuclear War redirects here. For other uses, see Nuclear War (disambiguation). Warfare Military history Eras Prehistoric Ancie …   Wikipedia

  • Nuclear power in Pakistan — …   Wikipedia

  • Nuclear safety in the United States — Nuclear safety in the U.S. is governed by federal regulations and continues to be studied by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The safety of nuclear plants and materials controlled by the U.S. government for research and weapons production …   Wikipedia

  • Nuclear Energy (sculpture) — Nuclear Energy Artist Henry Moore Year 1967 Type Bronze Dimensions Divergent measurements exist; see text Location University of Chicago (outdoor), Chicago, Illinois …   Wikipedia

  • Nuclear medicine in Pakistan — Nuclear Medicine is one of the flourishing field in Pakistan. The history of pursuing nuclear medicine goes back to 1956, when the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) was established under the executive order of the Prime Minister of… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”