American Nuclear War Plan, 1956

American nuclear war plan, 1956

The below targets are from a declassified 1956 US Strategic Air Command nuclear war plan. Overlaid are indications of possible downwind fallout patterns, whose direction and wind speed were dictated by actual (present-day) weather information. Hover your mouse over each target for information about it, and the ability to view it in the NUKEMAP. Casualty estimates use present-day population data.

Casualties: .  (show details)
Immediate casualties for 1,154 targets for 50 kt bombs:
fuzing choiceinjuriesfatalities
surface bursts:
airbursts:
Note: Surface bursts would have radioactive fallout, like shown here; airbursts would have much less downwind radiation.   (hide details)
Target data obtained by the National Security Archive using the Freedom of Information Act.
Digitized by the Future of Life Institute. Rendered with NUKEMAP by Alex Wellerstein.
More information on the fallout and casualty assumptions is available here.