As anxieties about a potential World War 3 continue to climb, available analysis offers clues about which U.S. states could be the most at risk during a nuclear exchange.
After Israel and the US launched strikes on Iran, concerns about the conflict widening into something on the scale of past world wars have intensified.
Worries about a major global war aren’t new, but the unpredictability of the current moment has left many people feeling uneasy.
For many, the central fear is that any large-scale war between major powers could involve nuclear weapons.
It’s easy to assume a nuclear strike on the U.S. would be designed purely for maximum casualties and destruction, but analysts note that targeting can also be driven by military strategy.
In that scenario, an attacker could aim to degrade the country’s ability to respond—potentially by striking land-based missile sites, including the missile silos spread across parts of the interior.
That strategic logic is why some states could face greater danger than others.
A fallout map published by Scientific American has previously outlined where impacts could be most severe if nuclear weapons were used against missile silos in the U.S. heartland—such as areas in and around Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska, Montana, and North Dakota.
A 2024 Newsweek report that reviewed the map concluded that eight locations would face the highest risk of radiation exposure, making them among the most dangerous places to live in such a scenario.
The eight places were:
On the other hand, the same discussion identified 15 states considered comparatively “safest” when weighing likely targets and fallout patterns.
They were:
Even so, experts caution that “safer” is only relative—because the effects of modern nuclear weapons can spread far beyond the immediate blast zones.
John Erath, the Senior Policy Director for the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation said: “While those who live near military facilities, ICBM silos in the Midwest or submarine bases along the coasts might bear the most immediate and severe consequences of a nuclear attack, there’s no question: ANY nuclear war or weapons detonation would be bad for everyone.
“Nowhere is truly ‘safe’ from fallout and other consequences like contamination of food and water supplies and prolonged radiation exposure.”