Life forms with extreme radiation resistance (tardigrades, Deinococcus radiodurans bacteria, amoebas, insects like cockroaches, scorpions, rats), small, adaptable omnivores (crows), and slow-metabolism reptiles (alligators) have the best chances, alongside hardy plants and underground microbes, while humans face societal collapse, starvation, and a nuclear winter, with survivors likely in isolated, food-rich Southern Hemisphere locations (like New Zealand) or protected subterranean areas.
A type of wheel-shaped microscopic animal called bdelloid rotifers also have been found to be extremely resistant to radiation. So have tardigrades, also known as water bears or moss piglets. Some fish, like goldfish or the mummichog, are quite hardy when it comes to withstanding radiation.
IT'S NOT just cockroaches. Lots of invertebrates will do rather well. Scorpions, for example, are so effective at relecting radiation that they glow when you shine an ultra-violet light on them. They would laugh off a nuclear winter, too.
1- Iceland
Due to its remoteness, lack of military, and geothermal energy, Iceland is one of the safest nuclear war zones. Nuclear missiles cannot reach Iceland without being noticed due to the North Atlantic Ocean's isolation. Iceland's limited population and size would limit damage from a nuclear missile.
The "two-man rule" in nuclear operations is a security protocol requiring at least two authorized, trained personnel to be present and cooperate to perform critical tasks, like accessing or launching nuclear weapons, preventing any single person from acting alone to prevent accidental or unauthorized use, often involving separate keys, codes, or physical actions for each person. This system ensures checks and balances, seen in missile silo crews turning separate keys or submarines requiring dual authentication, creating a fail-safe against individual error or malice.
A basic rule for easily predicting approximate future exposure rates is called the "7-10 Rule of Thumb." This rule, based on exposure rates determined by survey instruments, states that for every seven-fold increase in time after detonation of a nuclear device, there is a 10-fold decrease in the radiation exposure rate ...
Russia and the United States together possess nearly 90% of the world's nuclear weapons, with Russia holding the largest total stockpile and the U.S. having a substantial number of deployed strategic warheads, making them the dominant nuclear powers by far, despite other nations like China, the UK, France, India, Pakistan, Israel, and North Korea also having nuclear arsenals.
A 1-megaton explosion can cause flash blindness at distances as great as 13 miles on a clear day, or 53 miles on a clear night. If the intensity is great enough, a permanent retinal burn will result.
Historical close calls
Ranked number one since 2008, Iceland remains the world's most peaceful nation, leading across all three domains: safety and security, ongoing conflict and militarisation. It even recorded a 2% improvement this year, widening the gap from the second-place country on the list.
There are 4,600 species of cockroaches – and only a small percentage of them – around 30 species – exhibit pest-like behaviour, but it's safe to say that any species of cockroach would not be able to survive a direct nuclear bomb blast; if the radiation doesn't get them, the heat and impact will.
The radiation at Chernobyl will keep humans away for thousands of years. And that, despite the radiation levels, seems to be quite enough to enable the wildlife here to thrive.
Mammals
Aluminum foil can serve as a useful shield against certain types of radiation, particularly alpha and some beta particles. However, its limitations become evident when faced with gamma radiation, which requires much denser materials for effective protection.
In 1947 Einstein told Newsweek magazine that "had I known that the Germans would not succeed in developing an atomic bomb, I would have done nothing."
Older buildings with layers upon layers, buildings made out of solid concrete, etc... will give you a better chance. It also depends on how close you are to the initial blast. If you're far enough away, staying indoors is your best option. Stay inside for some time to allow for the radiation levels to go down.
“I don't know what weapons World War III will be fought with, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.” It's always an advantage in any philosophical debate to have the last word.
DEFCON 1 is the highest and most severe alert level. It signifies that an immediate or ongoing attack on the United States or its allies is happening. This level means that nuclear war is imminent.
If the worst-case scenario occurs, what to do if WW3 starts should be clear in your emergency plan: Follow all official alerts: Remain informed by tuning in to official sources, and do not leave your shelter until an official clearance is given. Government-issued alerts will advise on the safety of different areas.
Heavy clothing and even the outer layers of the skin prevent internal damage from alpha and beta radiation types (along with a respirator to prevent inhalation).
Is it possible to outrun the shockwave from nuke in a car if you're no where near the centre of blast radius? No. The minimum speed of a blast wave is the speed of sound. The real speed, of course, will be higher.
Go as far below ground as possible or, if that is not possible, to the center of a tall building. If possible, turn off fans, air conditioners, and forced-air heating units that bring air in from the outside. Close fireplace dampers.
The Tsar Bomba (code name: Ivan or Vanya, internal designation "AN602") was the most powerful nuclear weapon or weapon of any kind ever constructed and tested. A project of the Soviet Union, it was a thermonuclear aerial bomb, tested on 30 October 1961 at the Novaya Zemlya site in the country's far north.
Who has the most nuclear weapons? Russia has the most confirmed nuclear weapons, with over 5,500 nuclear warheads. The United States follows behind with 5,044 nuclear weapons, hosted in the US and 5 other nations: Turkey, Italy, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands.