J. Robert Oppenheimer chose a remote spot in south central New Mexico to build and test the world's first atomic bomb. The people who lived in the surrounding Tularosa Basin were not asked for permission or warned of the risk posed to their health and safety. Nearly 80 years later, proposed legislation giving one-time payments to New Mexicans who contracted cancer as a consequence of nuclear testing has been allowed to expire, blocked by House Speaker Mike Johnson. The congressional stalemate comes as testing programs ramp up and the world braces for the possibility of nuclear war. Tina Cordova of the Tularosa Basin Downwinders Association joins Lauren Warnecke and Matt Caplan.

On this episode of "Twelve Thousand Bombs," you'll hear from climatologist Lili Xia of Rutgers University. Xia was the leading author on a landmark 2022 research paper in Nature Food detailing climate models and the potential for widespread famine in the aftermath of a nuclear conflict.

In the Sept. 10 presidential debate between candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, nuclear weapons were mentioned just once. But President Joe Biden has said the threat of nuclear war is as high as it's ever been. Our new podcast explores the history, science and policy of the United States' nuclear program—and why we should be talking about it.

Illinois State University physics professor Matt Caplan wants to raise public awareness about the existential threat posed by nuclear weapons, efforts to disarm the nine countries who have them and accountability for harm caused by radioactive fallout.