Ten interesting facts to know about nuclear weapons

New Delhi: A nuclear weapon derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. These are also known as the weapon of mass destruction.Here are ten interesting facts to know about nuclear weapons: The number of nuclear weapons the world possesses right now, is more than enough to wipe out mankind from the face of the earth, many times over. In order to maintain its nuclear arsenal, the United States of America spends $100 million everyday. There are thousands of nuclear missiles that the US and Russia have on stand-by, also known as ‘hair-trigger alert'. Once these missiles are launched, there is no way to recall them. ‘Little Boy', which was dropped on Hiroshima and killed 140,000 people had a yield of 13 kilotons. Today's bombs can have a yield of 50,000 kilotons, or 50 megatons. A 5 megaton bomb is the same as all the explosives put together that were used in World War II. The US and Russia together possess more than 90% of the world's nuclear arsenal. In the past 70 years, around 50 nuclear weapons have been lost, and still remain unaccounted for. Over the decades, both the US and Russia have spent more than $5 trillion each on building nuclear weapons. The US alone needs more than 15,000 square miles to maintain its nuclear bases and facilities. Even if one is hidden in an underground bunker, surviving a nuclear attack still isn't 100% certain.