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[–] 16 points 11 months ago* (1 child)

The second question here points to a response by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and then notes:

It makes me happy that an arm of the US government has, in some official capacity, issued an opinion on the subject of firing nuclear missiles into hurricanes.

Aged like milk.

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  • [–] 13 points 11 months ago

    A fully developed hurricane can release heat energy at a rate of 5 to 20×10^13 watts and converts less than 10% of the heat into the mechanical energy of the wind. The heat release is equivalent to a 10-megaton nuclear bomb exploding every 20 minutes. According to the 1993 World Almanac, the entire human race used energy at a rate of 10^13 watts in 1990, a rate less than 20% of the power of a hurricane.

    So a nuke would do squat to the hurricane, but kill us all from flinging the rads everywhere

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