Atomic Soldiers - What Does a Nuclear Bomb Explosion Feel Like?

The existential threat of nuclear war is no longer a Cold War memory. With nine countries armed with around 15,000 atomic bombs up to 53 times stronger than those dropped in the Second World War, the stakes are arguably higher.

Ahead of the International Day against Nuclear Tests on August 29, we met up with British atomic veterans who were present at test sites in Australia and the Pacific, to find out what it’s like to experience a nuclear bomb explosion up close.

While most people know about the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, fewer are aware that an additional 2,000 atomic bombs were detonated after World War II and tested on hundreds of thousands of young soldiers to prepare them for nuclear war.

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[prestonhanson]

That man's story about his daughter was soul destroying. Can you imagine the agony of having your child die like that. How God awful. I'd immagin a man could never be the same ever again. That governemt owes those men a huge apology

[klote]

I'm a HUGE war historian and war movie buff. I've seen hundreds of interviews of soldiers from past to present and I have to say with out a doubt this is the most fascinating, interesting, informative, disgusting and sad set of interviews I've ever seen! Thank you Vice for interviewing these men! Their voices needed to be heard so so so bad! Wow the personal stories of these guys are incredibly sad!

[jonchalk]

"...and for a government to do that to its own people, is absolutely disgraceful." -Douglas Hern, Atomic Veteran.

[scoutobrien]

"There was a terrific rush of wind and a noise like thunder. The biggest thing that ever was; ugly and beautiful. It was like a Pillar of Fire. I thought an airplane had crashed into the Sun."

Nagai Makoto, age 10. Nagasaki 1945

[captain-obvious-speaks]

If the shockwave hit 30 seconds after detonation then these veterans were ~9 kms from the detonation site considering speed of shockwave at 300m/s. 9 kms from a bloody nuclear explosion!

[wblighting]

When my father was in his nineties we had a family vacation in Vegas. My oldest cousin and I were enjoying a (large part of a) bottle of Glenfiddich with my dad. Eventually we were pretty ripped and having a great time. Being that we there to visit the Atomic testing museum in Vegas the conversation turned to my father's involvement with the testing.

My father was a part of the Greatest Generation, and was a "my word is my bond" kind of patriot. So when my cousin and I asked him to tell us about what he experienced he said he recoiled a bit and said there's no way because he took an oath with the US government to take what he saw to the grave. We spent about 30 minutes showing him many YouTube videos and websites to prove to him that it was all declassified and permittable to speak freely. I turned my phone's video recorder on to record our conversation.

One of the things that stood out was that he was sent in by the scientist to Ground Zero only 17 hours after the explosion. All the equipment he was given was gloves, a dust mask and overalls. When I heard this the questions in my head was "why didn't the scientists go in in get it themselves?" Why send a freaking heavy equipment operator in? Those scientists knew the dangers and sent my naive father and others in to die a horrible death. My father got thyroid cancer but lived until he was 101. His coworkers died decades before. Ever since then I have had a healthy distrust of Big Government and disdain of anyone who wants to make our government bigger and put our lives into the hands of Big Brother.

[chrisholmquist]

10:39

Our generation doesn't know, don't they?
They don't know what's happening.

My wife sometimes says to the hospital,
"He's been under 2 bombs".
And they think, "Who's that silly old fool",
You know, "What's he romancing about?
He's been in a bomb testing site".

They have no idea.

They have no idea about anything.

[lolade_akinola]

Jesus lord. To know that madmen are in control of these weapons and at anytime they could drop it on us is truly terrifying

[grimygrime]

That was horrible what was done to those men.

[vulcan]

Imagine not being able to pass on your bloodline because the government...

[bowillieman]

I can't even imagine trying to go back to normal life after experiencing something like that. How could anything matter anymore.

[ritchiecooper]

If this is what governments do to their most trusted and loyal men and woman, imagine what their going to do to the rest of the population that just voted them in. Wake up people.

[eviegrays]

It’s not even up to the younger generation right now, because the older generation is still leading. If many of them still have such reckless attitudes towards nuclear bombs, focused more on ‘winning’ than the well-being of our fellow human beings, friends, and family, how is the younger generation supposed to follow?

[natem]

What a documentary. This is history, Morgan Knibbe and the rest of Motherboard should be proud to have preserved it for generations to come. I can only hope this is the last time a work such as this needs to be made.

[jony]

It must have been absolutely surreal. These men do a great job at describing it, but the awesomeness of it, how it was inexplicably alien, is captured by how some of the men would cry and ask for their mom....

[John-unov]

My grandpa was on one of these boats. He's told me about seeing through the crook of his arm being able to see his bones

[keanucarmean]

God that would be scary to be able to see your bones with your eye closed…. I couldn’t even imagine the terror

[thekingofcool]

"The horror... The horror..."
-Col. Kurtz

[andydixon]

This just shows how utterly dispensable the young soldiers lives are in the eyes of the military/government. Criminal to the extreme.

[nodeloliver]

Yet here we are, threatening and playing with nukes like children play with toys, to this day. It would almost be hilarious, if it wasn't so terrifying and sobering.