Quote Originally Posted by Franconicus
Maybe we are a bit off topic, but here some remarks.

Radiactive Isotopes from nukes can be found everywhere on earth. That is true. However, this 'fallout' integrates all nukes ever exploded. The ones used in WW2 were rather small. Additionally you have to see where the bomb explodes, on earth, below or in the atmosphere. The inpact on the radioactive material is very different.

The worst thing of nukes (at least on a global scale) is not the radioactivity, it is the dust in the atmosphere that darkens the sky. If memory serves it takes some hundred years until it falls out again (experience comes mainly from volcanos).
When mount Tumbora erupted it only took a few decades for the atmosphere to clear. I doubt it takes a century for the atmosphere to clear from one nuke. Mt. Tumbora shot 1,500,000 metric tons of dust into the upper atmosphere, and nukes come nowhere near that, all of the nukes used thus far would come short of that.


Originally posted by LegioXXXUlpiaVictrix
he data then probably includes the other bombs as well. In any case we can probably agree that it's a fairly safe figure to say that over 30 nukes launched in the same year would for sure be a total disaster in terms of radiation.
Well I doubt the fallout would do much, but the amount of dust shot into the upper atmosphere would cuase global cooling, far far worse then the radiation. Mt Tumbora caused snow to fall in July in the USA and it blew its top in indonesia. Though one good thing would be the spectacular sunsets. You may die from freezing to death, but at least you'll get to see a nice sunset.