Is radiation a danger from the initial blast of a nuclear explosion?

In the form of radioactive rays?



I realize that the blast wave and intense heat will be what kills you, but let's say you manage to survive those some sort of shelter. Would radiation be sleeting through you anyway?



Or is the radiation not really present during the blast, but only after in the fallout.Is radiation a danger from the initial blast of a nuclear explosion?
First of all, the "intense heat" *IS* radiation. When you say, "radioactive rays" you are talking about what scientists call "ionizing radiation." The ionizing radiation doesn't travel far. In fact, most of the energy released by the nuclear fission is released in the form of gamma rays, but they are absorbed by the surrounding air. The absorption process instantly heats a huge volume of air to white heat, and that heated air is what we call the "fireball." The thermal radiation from of the fireball (i.e., the heat and light), and the subsequent blast as the heated air expands are what do most of the damage.



"...let's say you manage to survive those some sort of shelter..."



If your shelter was good enough to protect you from the flash and the blast, then perhaps it also was good enough to protect you from any residual gamma rays that might make it as far as where you are. Remember, most of the gammas are inside the initial fireball. If your shelter is inside that radius, and it survives, then it must be pretty amazingly strong.



Neutron radiation is a different problem. Neutron radiation, not only is deadly in and of itself, but it also "activates" everything it penetrates (i.e., it turns ordinary stuff radioactive). Much of the fallout from a "dirty" nuclear explosion literally *IS* dirt that has been activated by the neutrons from the blast. Neutrons are kind of counterintuitive in the way they behave. They zip right through dense metals like lead and steel, but they are stopped cold by water and plastic and anything that contains a lot of hydrogen atoms. When they stop, though, they make X-rays, so the water/plastic/whatever shield must also contain or be backed by some kind of shielding to absorb the X-rays.



It turns out that reinforced concrete is a very cost effective neutron shield because it contains a lot of water molecules within its structure, but it also is dense enough to absorb the secondary x-rays.



Summary: I say, If you are sheltered by solid concrete walls* that are thick enough to survive the blast, then there's a good chance that you will survive the "prompt" radiation as well. The fallout? That's a whole nother story.



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*Not brick, not stone, not sandbags, etc. It's the cement in the concrete that absorbs the neutrons. If the walls are made of other stuff, then you may require additional neutron shielding.
The nuclear detonation creates an intense burst of radiation, in addition to the fallout which comes after. In fact, most of the fallout is comprised of debris thrown up by the blast (or sucked up by the rising mushroom cloud) which has been irradiated by this burst.



Paradoxically, this radiation is more of a risk the smaller the bomb. With larger bombs, anything inside the area affected by the radiation burst will be vaporised by the fireball or destroyed by the blast. With small bombs it is possible to survive the blast and fireball (mainly behind/in some kind of shelter) and still be subject to a fatal dose of radiation from the burst (which can only be practically blocked by meters of concrete or significant lead shielding)Is radiation a danger from the initial blast of a nuclear explosion?
I would expect high energy radiation to be expelled with the light, heat %26amp; sound of a nuclear explosion. Thus if you're hit by the visible light of the explosion you're also subject to its high energy radiation. The intensity of said radiation would be inversely proportional to the square of the distance from explosion, assuming you're far enough away, initially, to survive the blast itself.
The miles away from the initial explosion will tell. Say its a small bomb.10 miles from ground zero,expect to be dying quickly. 20 miles a Little slower, and so on.After an nuclear explosion radiation sets in for years.Hiroshima and Nagasaki are still radio active to this day.As you are further from the blast the better your chances for survival.Go back into a recently bombed area,and the radiation levels can still kill you. It takes years for the level to go down.Is radiation a danger from the initial blast of a nuclear explosion?
There is a book containing stories written by children that survived Hiroshima attack...read the stories and it will make you cry, many of them deal about people dying in terrible circumstances shortly (hours, so before any fallout) after the blast. If you are close to the center of explosion you count as one of the lucky ones if the heat or a rock gets you and not radiation.
the process of the blast; nuclear reaction prduces all possible radiations

alpha = helium ion

beta = electron

gamma = x-Ray radiation

light, heat and radio



the fallout is the radioactive particles from the bomb itself AND from the non-radioactive atoms which have become radioactive by changing isotope, which are scattered around.



shelter, if good enough and NOT vaporized in the fireball, would offer some protection
Yes, the radiation is present during the blast.