Nuclear Weapons to Cost $10 Trillion to American Taxpayers over the First Century of the Atomic Age

Nuclear Weapons cost the U.S. taxpayers almost $5.8 trillion over the 1940-1996 period and are projected to cost another $3+ trillion from the mid-2010s through 2040 as part of the nuclear modernization currently underway.

Rajat Narang - The Radioactive Warzone

10/8/20242 min read

The nuclear weapons are projected to cost $10 Trillion to the American taxpayers over the first century of the Atomic Age, i.e., from 1940 to 2040, as per the analysis and estimates made by the author of the upcoming book, "Playing with Fire of the Gods & Flying Matchsticks - Nuclear Weapons and the Reckless Cold War Rivalry between the Superpowers" releasing on October 23, 2024.

Further, as per the analysis, the United States spent $5.8 trillion from 1940-1996, as per the estimates made by the U.S. Government study made in 1996 and subsequently published in the book Atomic Audit by author Tom Blanton. Of this massive amount, around 20% or around $1.2 Trillion was actually spent on the nuclear weapons complex while the remaining 80%, translating into $4.6 trillion was spent on the Strategic Nuclear Delivery Vehicles (SNDVs) over the 1940 to 1996 period.

In the 21st Century, amid a rapidly deteriorating global security environment marked by the rise of a number of revisionist states, led by a resurgent Russia and ascendant China, seeking alteration of world order; nuclear weapons have been the focus of attention for top global nuclear powers as they embark on a massive nuclear modernization and production ramp-up drive. China is ramping up production of its nuclear weapons with the size of Chinese nuclear stockpile set to triple from 500 as of 2023 to 1500 by 2035. Russia, on the contrary, has withdrawn itself from most of Cold War-era arms control treaties, developing a range of destabilizing nuclear delivery systems and has recent undertaken a major, dangerous change in its nuclear doctrine.

In response, the U.S. has undertaken a major modernization of its nuclear weapons complex as well as the nuclear triad since 2015 which is likely to cost around $3.5 trillion through 2040. Key elements of this modernization, include, the development of the B-21 Raider Long Range Strike Bomber (LRSB), as a replacement for the existing B-B1-B Lancer and the B-2 Spirit bombers, the development of the Sentinel ICBM as a replacement of the 1970s-era Minuteman III ICBM, which alone is projected to cost $1 trillion alone, and the development of Virginia-class SSBN and Columbia-class nuclear powered attack submarines to replace the existing Ohio-class and Los Angeles-class subs.

The modernization of nuclear weapons and delivery systems cost the U.S. taxpayers around $70 billion for the year 2023 alone and this number is likely to go further up going forward as the B-21 program moves into the LRIP stage, Sentinel program moves towards prototyping stage while the production of nuclear subs is ramped-up on priority.

The nuclear weapons and delivery systems, thus, are going to cost the American almost $10 trillion over the 1940-2040; after factoring in the maintenance costs spent on the Nuclear Stockpile Stewardship Program, undertaken from the 1990s till 2014 to maintain U.S. nuclear weapons; with the nuclear modernization likely to be completed. by 2040.

For more insights, analysis and perspectives, pre-order a copy of "Playing with Fire of the Gods & Flying Matchsticks - Nuclear Weapons and the Reckless Cold War Rivalry between the Superpowers"

The book is releasing on October 23, 2024 and is available for pre-order on Amazon

About the Author: Rajat Narang is the Co-Founder & Partner of Noealt Corporate Services apart from being an A&D Industry Researcher & Specialist, Serial Author and Nuclear, Aviation & Cold-War Historian. For his full bio and list of books authored by him on the Global A&D Industry, access his author page on Amazon.