>>507441458"Yes, the concept of "nuclear winter" is a widely discussed and researched theory in the scientific community. It hypothesizes a severe and prolonged global climatic cooling effect that would occur after a large-scale nuclear war.
Here's a breakdown of the core idea:
Widespread Firestorms: Nuclear explosions, particularly those targeting cities and industrial areas, would ignite massive firestorms.
Soot and Smoke Injection: These fires would generate enormous amounts of black, sooty smoke, which would be injected high into the atmosphere, specifically into the stratosphere.
Sunlight Blockage: Once in the stratosphere, this soot would spread globally, forming a dense, persistent layer. This layer would block a significant portion of sunlight from reaching the Earth's surface.
Global Cooling: The reduction in sunlight would lead to a drastic and prolonged drop in global temperatures, creating "winter-like" conditions for months or even years. This is the "nuclear winter" effect.
Catastrophic Consequences: Such a cooling event would have catastrophic consequences, including widespread crop failure, famine, disruption of ecosystems, and further devastation for any human survivors.
Scientific Consensus and Evolution of the Theory:
The nuclear winter theory gained prominence in the 1980s, driven by research from scientists like Richard Turco, Owen Toon, Thomas Ackerman, James Pollack, and Carl Sagan (often referred to as the TTAPS team). While the initial models were limited by the computing power of the time, the fundamental physics of sunlight blockage causing cooling was sound."
Idiot