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The creation of atomic bombs stands as one of history's most defining events. Overnight, nations gained the terrifying capability to annihilate entire cities in mere moments. As a result, global warfare evolved from a struggle for victory into a potential extinction event. The constant threat of sudden obliteration deeply influenced the way people lived and interacted with one another.
Below are ten unexpected consequences resulting from the presence of nuclear weapons.
10. The Boom in Bunker Sales
During the Cold War, a fierce ideological battle between communism and democracy was compounded by the global threat of nuclear warfare. Capitalism, always ready to capitalize on any situation, saw an opportunity to profit from this fear. In the 1950s, salesmen crisscrossed the United States, pitching nuclear bunkers as the ultimate solution to surviving an atomic attack.
Advertising thrives when it taps into people's fears of missing out on essential products. In 1958, one bunker seller believed the key was to instill fear about the dangers of living without one. He would ask homeowners, especially those with children, 'What would you do if a bomb exploded right now? Where would you go?' If they suggested their basement, he would counter, asking how they'd survive when a nuclear explosion demolished their home above it. His pitch? Buy a Kidde Kokoon shelter kit for just $3,000, offering peace of mind while facing the end of the world in comfort.
9. Nuclear Theology
Once you had your atomic bomb shelter, several difficult questions awaited. In the deeply Christian U.S. of the 1950s, what would your Christian duty be if neighbors showed up at your door asking to use your shelter during a nuclear catastrophe? What if you didn't have enough space for everyone? Would it be morally right to turn them away to face certain death?
In 1961, Time magazine tackled this dilemma in an article called 'Gun Thy Neighbor?' The responses varied dramatically. One individual shared, 'When my shelter’s ready, I plan to install a machine gun at the entrance to keep people out in case the bomb falls.'
Rev. Hugh Saussy had a different perspective. He stated, 'If someone needed to use your shelter, you should offer it to them and leave yourself.' Yet even he seemed unsure of this stance, admitting, 'That’s not how things would likely unfold, but that’s the true Christian response.'
8. Nuclear Ethics
As religion grappled with the moral response to nuclear weapons, philosophers also began to explore their ethical implications. This gave rise to the field of nuclear ethics, which examined a range of issues—from the morality of investing in nuclear arms instead of funding welfare programs, to whether maintaining nuclear deterrence was a justified reason for their existence.
This led to some intriguing thought experiments. In 1981, Harvard law professor Roger Fisher proposed an unconventional solution to prevent nuclear war: 'My idea was simple. Place a necessary launch code in a small capsule and implant it next to the heart of a volunteer. The volunteer would carry a large butcher knife and accompany the president. If the president ever decided to launch a nuclear attack, he would first have to kill one person with his own hands. The president would have to say, ‘George, I’m sorry, but millions must die.’ He would face the reality of innocent death, staring at someone before taking their life.'
7. Nuclear Plans
Once nations possessed nuclear weapons, it was only natural to explore ways to use them—not just in warfare. In the U.S., Project Plowshare was conceived to investigate peaceful uses for nuclear bombs. Named after a verse in the Book of Isaiah, the project envisioned turning destructive weapons into instruments of peace. 'And he shall judge the Gentiles, and rebuke many people: and they shall turn their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into sickles: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they be exercised any more to war.'
Some of the proposals from the past might sound absurd to us today. One suggestion was to create a new canal through Nicaragua using a series of explosive detonations, a project that was dubbed the Pan-Atomic Canal. Additionally, bombs were considered for linking underground waterways to boost water supplies—and, inevitably, increase radiation levels.
One of the most elaborate proposals was Project Chariot. The plan was to use hydrogen bombs to carve out a harbor in Alaska through underground explosions. The project was abandoned due to local opposition and the lack of need for a harbor in that region. However, some radioactive waste was buried in the area as part of an experiment to test its environmental impact. Thirty years later, when the site was revisited, it was discovered, to everyone's shock, that the radioactive waste had indeed spread contamination.
6. Peace Campaigns
Not everyone accepted the existence of nuclear weapons without protest. In Britain, philosopher Bertrand Russell founded the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. While others justified the nuclear threat by the looming Soviet menace, Russell, with his trademark logic, argued that it was better to be 'Red than dead.'
Just weeks after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Russell wrote, 'The prospect for the human race is darker than ever before. Mankind faces a clear choice: either we perish or we must embrace some measure of common sense. A new wave of political thinking is urgently needed if we are to avoid total disaster.' In 1955, Russell, along with other Nobel Laureates, drafted the Russell-Einstein Manifesto, urging a conference to discuss the ban of nuclear weapons.
In 1961, at the age of 88, Russell was imprisoned for seven days due to his involvement in protests against the deployment of Polaris missiles in Britain.
5. Human Radiation Experiments
By the 1940s, the risks of ionizing radiation were well understood. However, the extent of exposure to high levels of radiation and radioactive fallout remained limited in scope. But if nuclear warfare were to break out, the survival struggle for millions, or even billions, would become a harsh reality. To understand this better, researchers sought a way to study its impact.
The solution involved conducting a series of experiments on humans. Some were widely known, such as placing military personnel near atomic tests to observe the effects, often resulting in adverse outcomes. Others, however, were shrouded in secrecy. In the U.S., patients were injected with polonium, uranium, and plutonium without their consent. One patient, who had suffered broken bones, was injected with plutonium while his fractures went untreated for five days so that bone samples could be taken. Additionally, 15 of his teeth were removed for examination. Other experiments included giving radioactive substances to pregnant women and feeding children with special needs food containing radioactive elements.
Other countries conducted similarly unethical experiments but have been less forthcoming about their details.
4. The Mystery of Missing Nukes
When a nuclear bomb plummets from the sky, it's hard not to imagine mushroom clouds and immediate devastation. But occasionally, nothing happens. The reality is that transporting nuclear bombs by plane is a risky endeavor—sometimes, accidents happen, and bombs get released. Thanks to safety protocols, detonation is unlikely, but finding them can still be a challenge.
In 1966, near the Spanish town of Palomares on the Mediterranean coast, two aircraft collided. One was a nuclear bomber, and the other, a refueling plane. Shortly after, four nuclear bombs fell to the earth. Three landed on land, two of which triggered conventional explosives, scattering radioactive materials around the area. The fourth plunged into the ocean. Countless ships and divers embarked on a mission to find it, and after an exhaustive search, it was recovered from a depth of 3,000 feet (914.4 meters).
However, there are countless nuclear bombs that have been lost or misplaced throughout history. One, in particular, remains unaccounted for, having disappeared after a crash in North Carolina.
3. The Dark Side of Fiction
Though one can find humor in the nihilism brought about by the threat of nuclear annihilation, a far more direct reaction was to dramatize the utter devastation of atomic explosions. The BBC's 1984 broadcast of Threads must have left a lasting psychological scar on an entire nation, as it presented the total destruction of any hope for survival in the event of a war.
In the 1970s and 1980s, governments attempted to calm citizens by suggesting that a few simple measures could protect them and their loved ones in the event of World War III. A basic bomb shelter could be created by digging a trench or leaning doors against a wall. To shield against the thermal shock of a nuclear blast, one might paint windows white. Threads shattered all these false reassurances, offering a brutally realistic depiction of how Britain would handle even a limited nuclear conflict. Spoiler: not well at all.
The 1986 animated film When The Wind Blows adopts a lighter mood but is just as emotionally devastating. It tells the story of an elderly couple in the English countryside who follow all the government guidelines once nuclear war breaks out. Needless to say, things don’t end well for them. Meanwhile, in the United States, people watched The Day After, which aired on ABC in November 1983. This fictional account of a nuclear clash between NATO and the Warsaw Pact quickly escalates into a full-scale exchange between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, unleashing a wave of nuclear strikes.
2. The Lighter Side of Nuclear War
Even the darkest topics can evoke laughter, and nuclear war is no exception. The film Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb remains one of the darkest comedies ever made, poking fun at the absurdity of such a terrifying situation.
In the film, a renegade military officer dispatches nuclear bombers heading toward the Soviet Union, setting off a crisis when it's revealed that the USSR has a doomsday device designed to destroy the Earth automatically if they're attacked. Despite the gravity of the situation, this leads to a series of absurd events. It's full of memorable quotes, like when a general and the Soviet ambassador clash, and the president steps in to stop the fight by declaring, 'Gentlemen. You can’t fight in here. This is the War Room!'
The character of Dr. Strangelove steals the show—a former Nazi with an unhealthy obsession for ever-larger bombs. The real-life physicist Edward Teller, known for his enthusiasm for big bombs, was sometimes dubbed 'the real Dr. Strangelove.' When an interviewer brought this up to him in 1999, he responded coldly, 'My name is not Strangelove. I don’t know about Strangelove. I’m not interested in Strangelove. What else can I say? Look. Say it three times more, and I throw you out of this office.'
1. The Rise of Godzilla
Popular culture always mirrors the society from which it originates. Movies, television shows, and literature serve as reflections of the collective hopes, anxieties, and fears of a given time. Given the looming threat of nuclear war, it's no surprise that it frequently appears in various forms of entertainment.
In 1955, the film Them! hit theaters. It tells the story of gigantic, mutated ants emerging from the New Mexico desert, wreaking havoc on nearby cities. The ants have been transformed by the atomic bomb tests conducted in the area. While this wasn't the first movie to explore the potential dangers of nuclear warfare in a sci-fi context, it remains one of the most memorable.
Released in 1954, Godzilla made its debut in Japan, linking the creature directly to the consequences of nuclear testing. Wherever Godzilla appears, a trail of radioactive destruction follows. The monster serves as a powerful symbol of the perils associated with atomic warfare. Given the tragic events of Hiroshima and Nagasaki less than a decade before, it's clear why the film would deeply resonate with the people of Japan.
