What is the Nuclear Blast Simulator?
Nuclear Blast Simulator is a free, interactive online tool that lets you visualize the effects of nuclear weapons on any city or location worldwide. Click anywhere on the map above to detonate one of 45+ historical and modern nuclear weapons — from the 15-kiloton Little Boy that destroyed Hiroshima to the 50-megaton Tsar Bomba, the largest nuclear weapon ever tested.
The simulator instantly displays color-coded zones for the fireball, severe blast (20 PSI), moderate blast (5 PSI), light blast (1 PSI), thermal radiation burn radii, and fallout. Casualty estimates are calculated from local population density. All math runs in your browser using scaling-law formulas from The Effects of Nuclear Weapons (Glasstone & Dolan, 1977) — the canonical declassified U.S. Department of Defense reference.
The tool is built as an educational resource to support nuclear-disarmament awareness. It is free, requires no signup, and never transmits your simulations to a server.
How to Use the Nuke Map
- Select a weapon from the dropdown — Tsar Bomba, Little Boy, Castle Bravo, modern warheads, or a custom yield.
- Click anywhere on the map to choose your detonation point. Pan and zoom freely; the map covers the entire planet.
- Watch the blast zones appear. Yellow is the fireball, red is severe blast, orange is moderate blast, gray is light blast, magenta and pink are thermal burn radii.
- Read the casualty estimates in the results panel — they update based on local population density.
Featured Nuclear Weapons
The Weapons Database catalogs every major nuclear weapon from 1945 to the present. Click any weapon below to see its detailed blast-radius profile, historical context, and a one-click simulator preset.
Featured City Scenarios
See pre-computed nuclear blast scenarios for major world cities — including computed casualty estimates from population density data.
Understanding Nuclear Blast Effects
Fireball
At the instant of detonation, a sphere of plasma forms with temperatures exceeding 10 million °C — hotter than the surface of the Sun. Everything inside the fireball is vaporized.
Air Blast (Overpressure)
A shock wave radiates outward at supersonic speeds. The 20 PSI zone destroys reinforced concrete; 5 PSI collapses most residential buildings; 1 PSI shatters windows out to many kilometers. These radii scale with the cube root of yield.
Thermal Radiation
Intense light and infrared radiation cause burns and ignite fires far beyond the blast zone. 3rd-degree burns are possible at distances up to several kilometers for strategic-yield weapons.
Fallout
Surface bursts produce massive radioactive fallout plumes that drift downwind for hundreds of kilometers. Air bursts produce minimal local fallout — which is why Hiroshima and Nagasaki were both air bursts.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Nuclear Blast Simulator?
Nuclear Blast Simulator is a free interactive web tool that visualizes the effects of nuclear weapons on any location worldwide. Pick from 45+ historical and modern nuclear weapons (or set a custom yield), click anywhere on the map, and see the fireball, blast overpressure zones, thermal radiation burn radii, and fallout patterns calculated from declassified scientific data.
Is the Nuclear Blast Simulator free to use?
Yes. The simulator is completely free, runs entirely in your browser, requires no account or signup, and never transmits your weapon selections or target locations to any server.
How accurate is the nuclear blast simulator?
The simulator uses scaling-law formulas from "The Effects of Nuclear Weapons" (Glasstone & Dolan, 1977), the canonical declassified DOD/DOE reference. Results are educational approximations: real-world effects depend on terrain, weather, building construction, and altitude of detonation, which the simulator idealizes.
Which nuclear weapons can I simulate?
The database includes Little Boy (Hiroshima, 15 kt), Fat Man (Nagasaki, 21 kt), the Soviet Tsar Bomba (50 Mt — largest test ever), Castle Bravo (15 Mt — largest US test), Ivy Mike (the first hydrogen bomb), modern strategic warheads (W88, W76, B61, B83), and conventional comparison bombs. You can also set any custom yield from 1 to 100,000 kilotons.
What is the difference between an air burst and a surface burst?
An air burst detonates above the ground at optimal altitude, maximizing the area affected by blast and thermal radiation but producing minimal fallout. Hiroshima and Nagasaki were both air bursts. A surface burst detonates at ground level, producing roughly 40-50% smaller blast radius but creating massive radioactive fallout, a large crater, and long-term ground contamination.
Can I share my nuclear blast simulation?
Yes. After running a simulation, the share button copies a URL that re-creates the same scenario when opened. It encodes the weapon, latitude, and longitude — useful for educators, journalists, and researchers.
See the full FAQ for more in-depth questions about nuclear weapon effects.
Ready to Simulate?
Scroll back to the top — pick a weapon, click a city, see the impact.
🎯 Back to the Simulator