Nuclear War

Nuclear arms have been an omnipresent force that has affected a wide range of different military and social technologies, philosophies, and ethics since their first use at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Countless films have portrayed nuclear holocausts. From blockbuster titles and ones even less known there are a plethora of movies, books, scifi games, and stories about nuclear attacks. Titles  such as the Terminator series, Dr. Strangelove, Black Rain, and countless others permeate out society and the entire modern world as a whole.

Nuclear weapons are a device that uses either fusion (the combining of atoms), fission (the decaying of atoms), or a combination of the two to create a sizable burst of radiation. This explosion typically results in a massive amount of heat at the site of the detonation, which for stronger weaponry can totally obliterate miles of substance, forming craters of dust, ash, and glass. Lesser weaponry typically release much less heat and may only be capable of contaminating an area with radiation. These smaller bombs can cause electrical damage, melting, cancer, and polluted water however, as there is no such thing as a "weak" nuclear bomb.

The side effects of those exposed to nuclear bombs are similar to that of radiation, however as much nukes release lots of infrared light (which decays into heat on contact with matter) many who are exposed to a blast will also show sighs of sever burns.

Depending on the potency of the nuclear weapon, the blast would be respectively large or smaller. Generally a nuclear explosion will follow the following effect guidelines.

Ground Zero: (~0 feet from detonation)
Total annihilation. Massive heat and radiation exposure.

Immediate Area: (~1 mile from detonation)
Structures severely burned or toppled by shockwave. Most buildings destroyed.
All personnel killed by exposure to heat, shrapnel from shockwave, or radiation overload.

Surrounding Area: (~5 mile from detonation)

Structures heavily burned or toppled by shockwave. Possibility of building not collapsing.

Personnel subjected to extreme heat, shrapnel, and shockwave unless shielded. Also exposed to ultimately lethal amounts of radiation.

Neighboring Area: (~10 mile from detonation)

Structures heavily burned or toppled by shockwave. Most buildings destroyed.

All personnel killed by exposure to heat, shrapnel from shockwave, or radiation overload.

Countryside (>100 miles of detonation)

Water sources contaminated with radioactive fallout. Most/all vegetation killed from heat.