Distinguish between biological warfare and nuclear warfare
Answers
Chemical weapons are not weapons that use chemicals, they’re legally defined under the Chemical Weapons Convention. Of the types, there are nerve agents, choking agents, blood agents, vomiting agents, blistering agents, incapacitating agents and riot control agents.
What has captured a great deal of interest of late are nerve agents. Nerve agents typically block the action of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase, which literally removes acetylcholine, one type of neurotransmitter. That leaves the victim’s nerves literally turned on and unable to transmit impulses. Death is typically caused by suffocation, as the nerves controlling the diaphragm and accessory muscles are paralyzed.
Blood agents are typically something like cyanide, which blocks oxygen usage and transport at a cellular level.
Choking agents attack the lungs, such as chlorine or phosgene oxime. The lungs literally fill with fluid, the victim literally drowning in their own bodily fluids.
Vomiting agents are like tear gas on steroids. Choking from the agent, just as with tear gas, but more severe, which induces vomiting.
Blistering agents, sulfur mustard, lewisite, cause massive blisters on the skin, eyes and respiratory passages. Death can occur from suffocation, but isn’t extremely common, save in children.
Incapacitating agents are things like agent BZ, fentanyl based gas, such as was used to end the Moscow Theater terrorist attack. Not intended to be lethal, but just to incapacitate the victim, either by inducing a dream-like, euphoric state or inducing a stuporous state.
Riot control agents, OC/pepper spray or CS are the most common. Can cause lethal effects in high concentrations, can cause blistering in high concentrations and can be lethal to children.
Biological weapons use diseases as a weapon. Anthrax, smallpox, possibly even genetically engineered natural disease causing organisms. Can be vector spread, such as malaria (via infected mosquitoes being released in the area of operations). Can be spore spread, such as the anthrax terror attacks after 9/11. Less controllable than chemical attacks, which are at the mercy of the winds and environment, none fielded such weapons.
Nuclear weapons. The atomic bomb, the hydrogen bomb. A neutron bomb is merely an atomic bomb that has enhanced radiation effects, with a lower explosive yield. Typically, made by using a tamper case of low density metal, rather than uranium, which would both enhance the explosive yield and increased fallout. Neutron bombs are designed to minimize structural damage, with enhanced radiation to kill the personnel in the intended radius.
Most current atomic bombs do have a fusion stage, firing as a fission-fusion-fission sequence, increasing the yield by adding stages. A hydrogen bomb is simply an atomic bomb with a larger fusion stage.
Of atomic bomb subtypes, occasionally, you’ll hear of clean atomic bombs and dirty atomic bombs. These are not the “dirty bomb” mentioned when discussing terrorism, the difference is, the tamper, part of the bomb case that confines the blast until sufficient fission has occurred to create a proper atomic explosion, is made of uranium to increase the explosive yield by secondary fission or a non-fissionable tamper, which would give a lower yield and decreased fallout.
Dirty bombs in a terrorism context contain radiological material, such as cobalt-60. Hence, the term radiological weapon. These were recently used in Iraq, both by mortar and small IED devices. The source of the cobalt-60 was probably oncology radiation source. Militarily insignificant, as area denial would be rather small. Useful only to terrorists.
Hence, why you’ll see CBRN, for Chemical, Biological, Nuclear and Radiological warfare in various civil defense and mitigation forums, discussions and government response planning.
There’s been some discussion that White Phosphorus and napalm are chemical weapons. They are not, as the Chemical Weapons Convention does not list them as chemical weapons. Per the Geneva and Hague Conventions, napalm would be a flame weapon and banned, save in nations that signed the conventions with reservations. White Phosphorus is designated as both incendiary and smoke, although the smoke is indeed quite toxic. Again, banned as an antipersonnel weapon, save in nations that signed the conventions with reservations.
The US signed quite a few agreements and conventions with reservations, as did the USSR and later, Russia.
There is much debate still over whether irregular forces, insurgent forces and similar are protected under any convention. While a consensus has not been fully reached, it appears that applying the conventions is the easiest path, due to the training of military forces and the greater ease of applying military justice in ongoing operations.
As we are becoming more modern an industrial day by day we are constantly developing our science and technology sectors.
Our war tactics and strategies have also modernized due to the latest science and technology.
Biological warfare:
This is the most modern and brutal war strategy where we use biological germs as weapon to remotely spread diseases among the rival army.
Nuclear warfare:
This modern war strategy is popular among many countries since the time of world wars. We use nuclear weapons in this wars which causes a lot of destruction in comparison with the normal weaponry.