Nuclear winter is still with us

Alan Robock and Owen Toon are scientists who have research the topic of nuclear winter for a long time. Their op-ed in today's NY Times reminds that the danger still is with is although the number of nuclear weapons has decreased for 70,000+ in the 20th century to 15,695 today. Some of the results of a nuclear war: smoke from fires ignited by nuclear explosions would be so dense that it would block out the sun, turning the earth cold, dark and dry, killing plants and preventing agriculture for at least a year; global temperatures would go below freezing, even in summer; crops would die and starvation could kill most of humanity. And nuclear weapons may be used by mistake, in a panic after an international incident, by a computer hacker or by a rogue leader of a nuclear nation.