Could We Destroy the Earth?
There are a lot of nuclear weapons on Earth, so many that we often say it's enough to “destroy the world several times over.” But could we? Well, that depends on what you mean. Also...no...
==========
So we talk about how we, the people of earth, have the ability to destroy ourselves in a way most species don’t. What we’re generally talking about when we say this is nuclear weapons, and how we, quote, have enough nuclear weapons to destroy the earth many times over. Well, first, no we couldn’t. In terms of pure destructive force, the entire nuclear arsenal of every country on earth (mostly concentrated in the US and Russia) is about 7000 megatons...the equivalent of seven million tons of TNT. The Chicxulub meteor impact didn’t destroy the earth, or even all life on earth, and it was about 14,000 times more powerful than that. 14,000 times more power than ALL OF THE NUCLEAR WEAPONS ON EARTH! We truly are puny humans. Even the relatively mild 1883 ...
==========
So we talk about how we, the people of earth, have the ability to destroy ourselves in a way most species don’t. What we’re generally talking about when we say this is nuclear weapons, and how we, quote, have enough nuclear weapons to destroy the earth many times over. Well, first, no we couldn’t. In terms of pure destructive force, the entire nuclear arsenal of every country on earth (mostly concentrated in the US and Russia) is about 7000 megatons...the equivalent of seven million tons of TNT. The Chicxulub meteor impact didn’t destroy the earth, or even all life on earth, and it was about 14,000 times more powerful than that. 14,000 times more power than ALL OF THE NUCLEAR WEAPONS ON EARTH! We truly are puny humans. Even the relatively mild 1883 ...
