How Russia’s Nuclear Arsenal, the World’s Largest, Compares With Others | WSJ

Russia has the largest inventory of nuclear weapons in the world, but many are in need of modernization.

WSJ breaks down Vladimir Putin’s arsenal as Moscow touts its nuclear capabilities amid the war in Ukraine.

Illustration: Eve Hartley

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#Russia #NuclearWeapons #WSJ

[alostbard]

Back in the 80's, when the U.S. and U.S.S.R. had 10x this amount, I was growing up about 30 miles from Damascus, Arkansas, where a Titan II missile exploded in a silo (the 9 megaton warhead was blown out the top and landed about 100 feet away without going off). Everyone was so used to constantly being under nuclear threat at that point, we all just kind of shrugged and went about our daily lives.

[channels]

Im just impressed by all the camermen's tracking of the missiles

[Vritas]

used in "combat". I don't think these civilians in Nagasaki and Hiroshima were doing much combat...

[bsting]

That's scary numbers of nukes for just two countries. 😳

[SoCalFreelance]

Russia's Tsar Bomba (AN602) hydrogen bomb is 50+ megatons. During testing it destroyed all structures within 34 miles of ground zero, anyone within 62 miles of the blast would have received third degree burns, glass windowpanes were broken out to 560 miles away.

[DaneReidVoiceOver]

Eventually someone is going to use these weapons again. Some old guy with a few years left on his life with nuclear toys and nothing to lose will go for it.

[macattack]

Great way to start off the day. Nothing to fear.

[FinancialShinanigan]

I hope nuclear war doesn't happen on a Friday, that'll be just cruel

[realisticmgmt]

2:27, it wasn't used in combat...it was used against a civilian population center...important to remember the difference.

[stevederp]

Russia is making these weapons as a defensive strategy. They can’t keep up with Americas offensive capabilities so they decided to make nuclear defensive weapons. So instead of wasting money on 5th generation planes or ships. They’ll make the Poseidon and sarmat which essentially ensures that those offensive weaponry that the United States has will never be used on them because there nuclear weapons are now so dangerous that we would lose.

The Poseidon in particular is very terrifying. It can be launched and have an unlimited range because its a nuclear powered torpedo. So it can dive deeper than any submarine and go much faster. It can be programmed to hit any target whether it be Los Angeles or New York. And with new technology the idea is that they can make a tsunami weapon where the nukes are designed to make a massive tidal wave that can literally flood an entire city. Likely then hitting it with a nuclear cobalt salt bomb which will make the entire area uninhabitable for years.

[Skyhulk]

TSAR BOMBA was worlds biggest Nuclear bomb 50 + megatons the shockwave was felt 500km away

[HelptheBroncos]

it doesn't matter who has the most warheads...no one wins in nuclear me'

[novascotianinfj]

correct me if im wrong here, but the warheads are not up to 400kt- these are MIRVS from the Satan 2. The Satan 1 was up to 400kt, Satan 2 is up to 750kt. Each missile can hold several of these warheads

[MAG]

Everybody wanna either disagree or fight. Nobody wanna advance with diplomacy & the future of humanity.

[aug-pahunters]

Do those warhead estimates include MIRVs or count that system as one?

[Copernicus]

I can't believe you left out hypersonic missiles

[americangirl]

This is when you really hope there is an alien species thwarting nuclear explosions.

[b_to_the_b]

It’s stupid to speculate whether Russia would use them or not as we never thought they would invade Ukraine in the first place

[Ingens_Scherz]

It's a very different situation than it was at the height of the Cold War. In those days - which I lived through - at the peak, the USA and allies possessed 50, 000+ deliverable nuclear devices of every imaginable kind against the Soviets' 60, 000+ That was my world in 1984. An all-out nuclear war would have, very simply put, sterilised the biosphere. (Read "The Last Ship" (1988) by William Brinkley if you want a reasonably accurate insight into how that would have looked.)
This situation is potentially terrible, and could lead to a strategic nuclear exchange. But, even if it did, the fact is that while most of the populations of the Northern Hemisphere would be essentially wiped out give or take a few million, most of the rest of the world would definitely survive.
So, it's most surely an utterly terrifying prospect, but in 2022 it's not the end of "The" world.
Just my world.

[Jspath]

Why does it matter how many nuclear warheads a country has when it only takes one to cause permanent damage?