With Oppenheimer in cinemas now, there's been a massive surge of interest in the devastating power of the atomic bomb.
It was the weapon that (arguably) ended the Second World War and undisputedly ushered in a new era where people lived under the fear that nuclear bombs could eradicate the entire human race.
The scientific consensus is that being caught in a nuclear explosion would be a dreadful and almost certainly lethal experience, but if that's not enough detail for you there's a simulation so people can get a sense of what it's like.
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Shared on TikTok by Eric Alan, the VR simulation has a person standing on a beach next to some appealing shrubbery before the picturesque scene is ruined by a honking massive nuclear explosion.
There's a bright flash of light from the blast before the unmistakable mushroom cloud begins to develop and that once appealing shrubbery is incinerated in the heat of the blast.
The blast only grows as the force of the bomb's explosion destroys the area around the person in the simulation and it's pretty safe to say that an actual human being would not be having a good time.
The mushroom cloud grows in height until it dominates the landscape as the catastrophic power of the nuclear bomb has wiped out everything in the surrounding area.
What footage of the simulation cannot fully convey is the sound of the nuclear bomb, which may not be quite what people expected it to sound like.
Within about 10 seconds of detonation the fireball from a nuclear bomb has reached its full extent, while a shockwave travelling at hundreds of kilometres an hour races out from the point of the explosion.
Anyone at ground zero is going to be dead immediately as the heat vaporises them, while those a bit further away will suffer from lung injuries, ear damage and potentially internal bleeding.
Buildings collapse under the power of the blast and objects are sent flying which can cause further damage.
The surrounding area will go up in flames from the heat just as the simulation demonstrated and living things in the area would be struck by horrendous burns.
Even people taking shelter underground could be affected by the heat and the blast as there's a lack of oxygen and the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning is increased.
While the simulation showed what happens if you're in the area to witness a nuclear bomb explode, the long term consequences are just as devastating as the initial blast, if not more.
Damage to health includes a significantly higher rate of cancer and harmful genetic defects.
As for how the bomb itself actually works, the one Oppenheimer created for the Manhattan Project worked by firing one amount of nuclear material into another and splitting the atom.
Oppenheimer used practical effects to simulate the world's first atomic bomb test, using all sorts of camera trickery and effects to recreate the blast and blinding light of a nuclear explosion.
Topics: History, Oppenheimer, Science, Technology
Joe Harker