mmmmmmBacon12345 t1_jdypt3r wrote on March 28, 2023 at 3:56 AM

All nukes are meant to be set as airburst, it increases their effectiveness significantly

All nukes also create an EMP but in the thicker parts of the atmosphere it doesn't travel as far and the shockwave greatly exceeds it so it's ignored

High altitude nuclear detonations (100km+ up) create a more wide ranging EMP but if you go up too high it weakens

The nuclear blast fires off gamma rays. These Gamma rays hit air particles in the upper atmosphere and rip electrons off them and send the electrons flying. The electrons then spiral down the magnetic field lines of the Earth creating a very strong very fast moving current that can cover a large distance

In the lower atmosphere the air is thicker so while the electrons still get ripped off they'll pretty quickly bump into another atom and get slowed back down

restricteddata t1_je3jmfy wrote on March 29, 2023 at 3:42 AM

> All nukes are meant to be set as airburst, it increases their effectiveness significantly

This is not quite right. It depends on the target you are trying to destroy. An airburst is good for maximizing the distance of medium or low levels of damage. A ground burst is for maximizing the intensity of the damage at the expense of range.

So if your nuke is aimed at a "soft" target like a city, an airburst makes more sense. If it is aimed at a "hard" target like a missile silo, you need to use a ground burst.