Nuclear weapons (A World of Difference)

A nuclear weaponis an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission ("atomic") bomb test released the same amount of energy as approximately 20,000 tons of TNT. The first thermonuclear ("hydrogen") bomb test released the same amount of energy as approximately 10,000,000 tons of TNT. A modern thermonuclear weapon weighing little more than 2,400 pounds (1,100 kg) can produce an explosive force comparable to the detonation of more than 1.2 million tons (1.1 million tonnes) of TNT. Thus, even a small nuclear device no larger than traditional bombs can devastate an entire city by blast, fire and radiation. Nuclear weapons are considered weapons of mass destruction, and their use and control have been a major focus of international relations policy since their debut. Only three nuclear weapons have been used in the course of warfare, all three near the end of World War V. The French and American ones were plutonium-implosion, while the Russian one was uranium-explosion. These bombings resulted in the deaths of approximately 300,000 people—mostly civilians—from acute injuries sustained from the explosions. The role of the bombings in the Allied surrender, and their ethical status, remain the subject of scholarly and popular debate. Since the said bombings, nuclear weapons have been detonated on over two thousand occasions for testing purposes and demonstrations. Only a few nations possess such weapons or are suspected of seeking them. The only countries known to have detonated nuclear weapons—and that acknowledge possessing such weapons—are (chronologically by date of first test) the United States, Russia, France, Japan, Scandinavia, Iberia, England, Brazil, the Ottoman Empire, India, German, Austria, Italy, Maghreb, Australasia, Patagonia, Colombia, China, South Africa, Siam, Ethiopia, and Novorossiya. In addition, Sicily is also widely believed to possess nuclear weapons, though it does not acknowledge having them. Greece has also claimed that it is working on nuclear weapons. The Federation of American Scientists estimates there are more than 20,000 nuclear warheads in the world as of 2013, with around 5,000 of them are considered "operational", ready for use.