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95-605: In service, the MADM was known as the M167 , M172 and M175 Atomic Demolition Charges (ADCs). The history of the MADM began in 1954 with the proposal for a light-weight multi-purpose warhead. Its predecessor, the first atomic demolition munition (ADM), was deployed in the same year. This was a low-yield weapon (0.5 to 15 kilotonnes of TNT (2.1 to 62.8 TJ)) used by special forces and commando teams to destroy enemy infrastructure such as bridges tunnels, and harbors, among others. The MADM warhead

190-557: A conventional bomb can devastate an entire city by blast, fire, and radiation . Since they are weapons of mass destruction , the proliferation of nuclear weapons is a focus of international relations policy. Nuclear weapons have been deployed twice in war , both by the United States against the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 during World War II . Nuclear weapons have only twice been used in warfare, both times by

285-527: A boosted, externally-initiated device. It was allegedly a Swan-type weapon utilizing an air-lens. The yield was reportedly 0.5 to 15 kilotonnes of TNT (2.1 to 62.8 TJ). The weapon was designed so it could be detonated by a timer of up to 21 days, by radio or by field wire, and featured a waterproof protective case. In its waterproof case, the weapon was 42 inches (1.1 m) long, 24 inches (0.61 m) wide, 28 inches (0.71 m) high and weighed 391 pounds (177 kg). ADM employment manuals describe

380-522: A complete redesign would be needed, effectively producing a new warhead. That study was followed by concerns about the plutonium hazard of the W25 and queries about producing an all- uranium weapon. A study group was convened which reported in November 1956 that, while the plutonium hazard could be reduced to some degree, inside the space limitations given, an all-uranium warhead was not possible without utilizing

475-678: A conference—called for in the manifesto—in Pugwash, Nova Scotia , Eaton's birthplace. This conference was to be the first of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs , held in July 1957. By the 1960s, steps were taken to limit both the proliferation of nuclear weapons to other countries and the environmental effects of nuclear testing . The Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (1963) restricted all nuclear testing to underground nuclear testing , to prevent contamination from nuclear fallout, whereas

570-458: A faster and less vulnerable attack, the development of long-range intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) has given some nations the ability to plausibly deliver missiles anywhere on the globe with a high likelihood of success. More advanced systems, such as multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles (MIRVs), can launch multiple warheads at different targets from one missile, reducing

665-647: A fission ("atomic") bomb released an amount of energy approximately equal to 20,000 tons of TNT (84  TJ ). The first thermonuclear ("hydrogen") bomb test released energy approximately equal to 10 million tons of TNT (42 PJ). Nuclear bombs have had yields between 10 tons TNT (the W54 ) and 50 megatons for the Tsar Bomba (see TNT equivalent ). A thermonuclear weapon weighing as little as 600 pounds (270 kg) can release energy equal to more than 1.2 megatonnes of TNT (5.0 PJ). A nuclear device no larger than

760-482: A fission bomb to initiate them. Such a device might provide a simpler path to thermonuclear weapons than one that required the development of fission weapons first, and pure fusion weapons would create significantly less nuclear fallout than other thermonuclear weapons because they would not disperse fission products. In 1998, the United States Department of Energy divulged that the United States had, "...made

855-421: A fusion weapon as of January 2016 , though this claim is disputed. Thermonuclear weapons are considered much more difficult to successfully design and execute than primitive fission weapons. Almost all of the nuclear weapons deployed today use the thermonuclear design because it results in an explosion hundreds of times stronger than that of a fission bomb of similar weight. Thermonuclear bombs work by using

950-461: A gun-type device. In May 1957, the AEC was directed to examine ways to minimize the plutonium hazard without increasing fissile material requirements. The results of that study remain classified, but the application was cancelled in November 1957. The W25 was 17.4 inches (44 cm) in diameter and 26.6 inches (68 cm) long, with a reported weight of 218 to 221 pounds (99 to 100 kg). The warhead

1045-399: A large amount of the total energy output. All existing nuclear weapons derive some of their explosive energy from nuclear fission reactions. Weapons whose explosive output is exclusively from fission reactions are commonly referred to as atomic bombs or atom bombs (abbreviated as A-bombs ). This has long been noted as something of a misnomer , as their energy comes from the nucleus of

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1140-450: A major achievement as it was believed to be of a new generation of weapons that required little maintenance or inspection — a "wooden" bomb, likened to that of needing the maintenance of a block of pine. In January 1961, Sandia was requested to develop an environmental safing device for the weapon. This was achieved with an inertial switch, producing the Mark 25 Mod 1 warhead. The weapon entered

1235-466: A minimum. Concern was expressed at this time over the use of thermal batteries in the weapon, because all the components needed to produce detonation would be present inside the warhead. An evaluation was therefore made and a report released in April 1955, describing several safing options that could be used. Eventually an automatic safe/arm device was selected, that disconnected the high voltage connections to

1330-472: A nation's economic electronics-based infrastructure. Because the effect is most effectively produced by high altitude nuclear detonations (by military weapons delivered by air, though ground bursts also produce EMP effects over a localized area), it can produce damage to electronics over a wide, even continental, geographical area. Research has been done into the possibility of pure fusion bombs : nuclear weapons that consist of fusion reactions without requiring

1425-532: A new nuclear strategy, one that is distinct from that which gave relative stability during the Cold War. Since 1996, the United States has had a policy of allowing the targeting of its nuclear weapons at terrorists armed with weapons of mass destruction . Robert Gallucci argues that although traditional deterrence is not an effective approach toward terrorist groups bent on causing a nuclear catastrophe, Gallucci believes that "the United States should instead consider

1520-425: A nuclear war between two nations would result in mutual annihilation. From this point of view, the significance of nuclear weapons is to deter war because any nuclear war would escalate out of mutual distrust and fear, resulting in mutually assured destruction . This threat of national, if not global, destruction has been a strong motivation for anti-nuclear weapons activism. Critics from the peace movement and within

1615-411: A nuclear weapon from another country by threatening nuclear retaliation is known as the strategy of nuclear deterrence . The goal in deterrence is to always maintain a second strike capability (the ability of a country to respond to a nuclear attack with one of its own) and potentially to strive for first strike status (the ability to destroy an enemy's nuclear forces before they could retaliate). During

1710-520: A nuclear weapon is a gravity bomb dropped from aircraft ; this was the method used by the United States against Japan in 1945. This method places few restrictions on the size of the weapon. It does, however, limit attack range, response time to an impending attack, and the number of weapons that a country can field at the same time. With miniaturization, nuclear bombs can be delivered by both strategic bombers and tactical fighter-bombers . This method

1805-409: A nuclear weapon to its target is an important factor affecting both nuclear weapon design and nuclear strategy . The design, development, and maintenance of delivery systems are among the most expensive parts of a nuclear weapons program; they account, for example, for 57% of the financial resources spent by the United States on nuclear weapons projects since 1940. The simplest method for delivering

1900-433: A nuclear weapon with suitable materials (such as cobalt or gold ) creates a weapon known as a salted bomb . This device can produce exceptionally large quantities of long-lived radioactive contamination . It has been conjectured that such a device could serve as a "doomsday weapon" because such a large quantity of radioactivities with half-lives of decades, lifted into the stratosphere where winds would distribute it around

1995-421: A policy of expanded deterrence, which focuses not solely on the would-be nuclear terrorists but on those states that may deliberately transfer or inadvertently leak nuclear weapons and materials to them. By threatening retaliation against those states, the United States may be able to deter that which it cannot physically prevent.". Graham Allison makes a similar case, arguing that the key to expanded deterrence

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2090-448: A safe escape by the launching aircraft. This reduced the accuracy of the weapon, eventually counteracting the advantage from the increased yield. Cost in nuclear material to kill was also studied, and it was found that the largest weapon diameter of 18 inches (460 mm) was most efficient in nuclear material. However, larger weapons required a larger rocket and caused aircraft compatibility problems. A diameter of 17.25 inches (438 mm)

2185-503: A significant portion of their energy from fission reactions used to "trigger" fusion reactions, and fusion reactions can themselves trigger additional fission reactions. Only six countries—the United States , Russia , the United Kingdom , China , France , and India —have conducted thermonuclear weapon tests. Whether India has detonated a "true" multi-staged thermonuclear weapon is controversial. North Korea claims to have tested

2280-547: A substantial investment" in the past to develop pure fusion weapons, but that, "The U.S. does not have and is not developing a pure fusion weapon", and that, "No credible design for a pure fusion weapon resulted from the DOE investment". Nuclear isomers provide a possible pathway to fissionless fusion bombs. These are naturally occurring isotopes ( Hf being a prominent example) which exist in an elevated energy state. Mechanisms to release this energy as bursts of gamma radiation (as in

2375-420: Is a thermonuclear weapon that yields a relatively small explosion but a relatively large amount of neutron radiation . Such a weapon could, according to tacticians, be used to cause massive biological casualties while leaving inanimate infrastructure mostly intact and creating minimal fallout. Because high energy neutrons are capable of penetrating dense matter, such as tank armor, neutron warheads were procured in

2470-451: Is analogous to identifying a criminal by fingerprints. "The goal would be twofold: first, to deter leaders of nuclear states from selling weapons to terrorists by holding them accountable for any use of their weapons; second, to give leaders every incentive to tightly secure their nuclear weapons and materials." According to the Pentagon's June 2019 " Doctrine for Joint Nuclear Operations " of

2565-403: Is coming up with ways of tracing nuclear material to the country that forged the fissile material. "After a nuclear bomb detonates, nuclear forensics cops would collect debris samples and send them to a laboratory for radiological analysis. By identifying unique attributes of the fissile material, including its impurities and contaminants, one could trace the path back to its origin." The process

2660-481: Is for the purpose of achieving different yields for different situations , and in manipulating design elements to attempt to minimize weapon size, radiation hardness or requirements for special materials, especially fissile fuel or tritium. Some nuclear weapons are designed for special purposes; most of these are for non-strategic (decisively war-winning) purposes and are referred to as tactical nuclear weapons . The neutron bomb purportedly conceived by Sam Cohen

2755-498: Is no evidence that it is feasible beyond the military domain. However, the U.S. Air Force funded studies of the physics of antimatter in the Cold War , and began considering its possible use in weapons, not just as a trigger, but as the explosive itself. A fourth generation nuclear weapon design is related to, and relies upon, the same principle as antimatter-catalyzed nuclear pulse propulsion . Most variation in nuclear weapon design

2850-409: Is not a fusion bomb. In the boosted bomb, the neutrons produced by the fusion reactions serve primarily to increase the efficiency of the fission bomb. There are two types of boosted fission bomb: internally boosted, in which a deuterium-tritium mixture is injected into the bomb core, and externally boosted, in which concentric shells of lithium-deuteride and depleted uranium are layered on the outside of

2945-490: Is not clear that this has ever been implemented, and their plausible use in nuclear weapons is a matter of dispute. The other basic type of nuclear weapon produces a large proportion of its energy in nuclear fusion reactions. Such fusion weapons are generally referred to as thermonuclear weapons or more colloquially as hydrogen bombs (abbreviated as H-bombs ), as they rely on fusion reactions between isotopes of hydrogen ( deuterium and tritium ). All such weapons derive

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3040-550: Is the only country to have independently developed and then renounced and dismantled its nuclear weapons. The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons aims to reduce the spread of nuclear weapons, but there are different views of its effectiveness. There are two basic types of nuclear weapons: those that derive the majority of their energy from nuclear fission reactions alone, and those that use fission reactions to begin nuclear fusion reactions that produce

3135-451: Is the primary means of nuclear weapons delivery; the majority of U.S. nuclear warheads, for example, are free-fall gravity bombs, namely the B61 , which is being improved upon to this day. Preferable from a strategic point of view is a nuclear weapon mounted on a missile , which can use a ballistic trajectory to deliver the warhead over the horizon. Although even short-range missiles allow for

3230-614: The Mark 25 Mod 0 or W25-0 warhead. Design release was scheduled for July 1956, with the first production warheads being produced in June 1957. Emergency capability warheads were produced beginning in December 1956. Initially, the rocket was certified for the F-86 Sabre, with later capability with the F-101 Voodoo and F-106 Delta Dart as the aircraft became available. The weapon was hailed as

3325-577: The Mark 30 and Mark 31 in February 1956. In September 1954, the US army began examining warheads for the MGR-3 Little John rocket (originally called Honest John Junior). Military characteristics for a warhead were provided in April 1955 and the W25 warhead was briefly considered for the role. In February 1956, the application was cancelled in favor of a higher-yield, smaller diameter weapon. The W45 warhead

3420-533: The RIM-8 Talos , CIM-10 Bomarc and MIM-3 Nike Ajax surface-to-air missiles . During discussions about the report, it was believed that tens of thousands of air defense warheads would be needed, and so the warheads would have to be economical in nuclear materials to reduce their cost. At the same time, the US air force wanted a high-velocity, nuclear armed, air to air missile . The air force believed that, because air defenses operated under peacetime conditions, it

3515-688: The Starfish Prime high-altitude nuclear test in 1962, an unexpected effect was produced which is called a nuclear electromagnetic pulse . This is an intense flash of electromagnetic energy produced by a rain of high-energy electrons which in turn are produced by a nuclear bomb's gamma rays. This flash of energy can permanently destroy or disrupt electronic equipment if insufficiently shielded. It has been proposed to use this effect to disable an enemy's military and civilian infrastructure as an adjunct to other nuclear or conventional military operations. By itself it could as well be useful to terrorists for crippling

3610-663: The Tsar Bomba of the USSR, which released an energy equivalent of over 50 megatons of TNT (210 PJ), was a three-stage weapon. Most thermonuclear weapons are considerably smaller than this, due to practical constraints from missile warhead space and weight requirements. In the early 1950s the Livermore Laboratory in the United States had plans for the testing of two massive bombs, Gnomon and Sundial , 1 gigaton of TNT and 10 gigatons of TNT respectively. Fusion reactions do not create fission products, and thus contribute far less to

3705-559: The United States against Japan at the end of World War II . On August 6, 1945, the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) detonated a uranium gun-type fission bomb nicknamed " Little Boy " over the Japanese city of Hiroshima ; three days later, on August 9, the USAAF detonated a plutonium implosion-type fission bomb nicknamed " Fat Man " over the Japanese city of Nagasaki . These bombings caused injuries that resulted in

3800-533: The United States , the Soviet Union (succeeded as a nuclear power by Russia ), the United Kingdom , France , China , India , Pakistan , and North Korea . Israel is believed to possess nuclear weapons, though, in a policy of deliberate ambiguity , it does not acknowledge having them. Germany , Italy , Turkey , Belgium , the Netherlands , and Belarus are nuclear weapons sharing states. South Africa

3895-720: The W25 warhead for the AIR-2 Genie missile was considered for the application. The program for the W45 was authorized in January 1956. In addition to MADM, the program was to develop warheads for Nike I , Little John , Terrier and ASROC . Possible devices for the program were tested in Operations Redwing and Plumbbob . In August 1956, it was decided that the ASROC warhead would be assigned to LASL as

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3990-570: The XW-44 , while the other warheads including MADM would be given to the University of California Radiation Laboratory (UCRL) (now Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory ) with the designation XW-45. In February 1957, it was believed that the weapon could be design released by mid-1958 with production beginning a year later. In March 1957, it was suggested that the W44 and W45 programs be consolidated. This proposal

4085-424: The hafnium controversy ) have been proposed as possible triggers for conventional thermonuclear reactions. Antimatter , which consists of particles resembling ordinary matter particles in most of their properties but having opposite electric charge , has been considered as a trigger mechanism for nuclear weapons. A major obstacle is the difficulty of producing antimatter in large enough quantities, and there

4180-599: The head of government or head of state . Despite controls and regulations governing nuclear weapons, there is an inherent danger of "accidents, mistakes, false alarms, blackmail, theft, and sabotage". In the late 1940s, lack of mutual trust prevented the United States and the Soviet Union from making progress on arms control agreements. The Russell–Einstein Manifesto was issued in London on July 9, 1955, by Bertrand Russell in

4275-436: The tropopause into the stratosphere , where the calm non-turbulent winds permit the debris to travel great distances from the burst, eventually settling and unpredictably contaminating areas far removed from the target of the explosion. There are other types of nuclear weapons as well. For example, a boosted fission weapon is a fission bomb that increases its explosive yield through a small number of fusion reactions, but it

4370-537: The "implosion" method, is more sophisticated and more efficient (smaller, less massive, and requiring less of the expensive fissile fuel) than the former. A major challenge in all nuclear weapon designs is to ensure that a significant fraction of the fuel is consumed before the weapon destroys itself. The amount of energy released by fission bombs can range from the equivalent of just under a ton to upwards of 500,000 tons (500 kilotons ) of TNT (4.2 to 2.1 × 10  GJ). All fission reactions generate fission products ,

4465-578: The 1980s (though not deployed in Europe) for use as tactical payloads for US Army artillery shells (200 mm W79 and 155 mm W82 ) and short range missile forces. Soviet authorities announced similar intentions for neutron warhead deployment in Europe; indeed, they claimed to have originally invented the neutron bomb, but their deployment on USSR tactical nuclear forces is unverifiable. A type of nuclear explosive most suitable for use by ground special forces

4560-425: The Cold War, policy and military theorists considered the sorts of policies that might prevent a nuclear attack, and they developed game theory models that could lead to stable deterrence conditions. Different forms of nuclear weapons delivery (see above) allow for different types of nuclear strategies. The goals of any strategy are generally to make it difficult for an enemy to launch a pre-emptive strike against

4655-488: The Joint Chiefs of Staffs website Publication, "Integration of nuclear weapons employment with conventional and special operations forces is essential to the success of any mission or operation." Because they are weapons of mass destruction, the proliferation and possible use of nuclear weapons are important issues in international relations and diplomacy. In most countries, the use of nuclear force can only be authorized by

4750-497: The Nuclear Age (1961) that mere possession of a nuclear arsenal was enough to ensure deterrence, and thus concluded that the spread of nuclear weapons could increase international stability . Some prominent neo-realist scholars, such as Kenneth Waltz and John Mearsheimer , have argued, along the lines of Gallois, that some forms of nuclear proliferation would decrease the likelihood of total war , especially in troubled regions of

4845-753: The USAF AIR-2 Genie , the AIM-26 Falcon and US Army Nike Hercules . Missile interceptors such as the Sprint and the Spartan also used small nuclear warheads (optimized to produce neutron or X-ray flux) but were for use against enemy strategic warheads. Other small, or tactical, nuclear weapons were deployed by naval forces for use primarily as antisubmarine weapons. These included nuclear depth bombs or nuclear armed torpedoes. Nuclear mines for use on land or at sea are also possibilities. The system used to deliver

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4940-512: The United States. Small, two-man portable tactical weapons (somewhat misleadingly referred to as suitcase bombs ), such as the Special Atomic Demolition Munition , have been developed, although the difficulty of combining sufficient yield with portability limits their military utility. Nuclear warfare strategy is a set of policies that deal with preventing or fighting a nuclear war. The policy of trying to prevent an attack by

5035-569: The W45 was assigned the name W45 Mod 1. This version of the warhead was only different from the W45 Mod 0 used in Little John and Terrier in that it had no environmental sensing device, the ADM role having precluded the possibility of such a device. Instead, the warhead received a three-digit combination padlock to restrict access to the device. War reserve production was achieved in April 1962. In October 1963,

5130-487: The army informed the Atomic Energy Commission that the usefulness of the weapon was limited by the inability to emplace the weapon underwater or in backfilled holes. Sandia and Livermore replied in December 1963, proposing a watertight case for the weapon featuring waterproof cables and connectors. A prototype was demonstrated in January 1963 and production of the case was authorized the following month. At about

5225-455: The atom, just as it does with fusion weapons. In fission weapons, a mass of fissile material ( enriched uranium or plutonium ) is forced into supercriticality —allowing an exponential growth of nuclear chain reactions —either by shooting one piece of sub-critical material into another (the "gun" method) or by compression of a sub-critical sphere or cylinder of fissile material using chemically fueled explosive lenses . The latter approach,

5320-485: The chance of a successful missile defense . Today, missiles are most common among systems designed for delivery of nuclear weapons. Making a warhead small enough to fit onto a missile, though, can be difficult. Tactical weapons have involved the most variety of delivery types, including not only gravity bombs and missiles but also artillery shells, land mines , and nuclear depth charges and torpedoes for anti-submarine warfare . An atomic mortar has been tested by

5415-435: The creation of nuclear fallout than fission reactions, but because all thermonuclear weapons contain at least one fission stage, and many high-yield thermonuclear devices have a final fission stage, thermonuclear weapons can generate at least as much nuclear fallout as fission-only weapons. Furthermore, high yield thermonuclear explosions (most dangerously ground bursts) have the force to lift radioactive debris upwards past

5510-587: The deaths of approximately 200,000 civilians and military personnel . The ethics of these bombings and their role in Japan's surrender are to this day, still subjects of debate . Since the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki , nuclear weapons have been detonated over 2,000 times for testing and demonstration. Only a few nations possess such weapons or are suspected of seeking them. The only countries known to have detonated nuclear weapons—and acknowledge possessing them—are (chronologically by date of first test)

5605-450: The decision process. The prospect of mutually assured destruction might not deter an enemy who expects to die in the confrontation. Further, if the initial act is from a stateless terrorist instead of a sovereign nation, there might not be a nation or specific target to retaliate against. It has been argued, especially after the September 11, 2001, attacks , that this complication calls for

5700-608: The detonators. By placing it inside the warhead and not in the warhead adaption kit, it became possible for the system to also short the x-unit capacitor and thermal battery. By May 1955, the rocket, the AIR-2 Genie, was taking shape. Unguided, the rocket would have a range of 3 to 5 miles (4.8 to 8.0 km) and a velocity of 3,000 feet per second (910 m/s) over its launch speed. Length would be 114 inches (2,900 mm), diameter with fins retracted of 22 inches (560 mm) and with fins extended 34 inches (860 mm). The warhead

5795-463: The energy of a fission bomb to compress and heat fusion fuel. In the Teller-Ulam design , which accounts for all multi-megaton yield hydrogen bombs, this is accomplished by placing a fission bomb and fusion fuel ( tritium , deuterium , or lithium deuteride ) in proximity within a special, radiation-reflecting container. When the fission bomb is detonated, gamma rays and X-rays emitted first compress

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5890-451: The fission bomb core. The external method of boosting enabled the USSR to field the first partially thermonuclear weapons, but it is now obsolete because it demands a spherical bomb geometry, which was adequate during the 1950s arms race when bomber aircraft were the only available delivery vehicles. The detonation of any nuclear weapon is accompanied by a blast of neutron radiation . Surrounding

5985-420: The fusion fuel, then heat it to thermonuclear temperatures. The ensuing fusion reaction creates enormous numbers of high-speed neutrons , which can then induce fission in materials not normally prone to it, such as depleted uranium . Each of these components is known as a "stage", with the fission bomb as the "primary" and the fusion capsule as the "secondary". In large, megaton-range hydrogen bombs, about half of

6080-520: The globe, would make all life on the planet extinct. In connection with the Strategic Defense Initiative , research into the nuclear pumped laser was conducted under the DOD program Project Excalibur but this did not result in a working weapon. The concept involves the tapping of the energy of an exploding nuclear bomb to power a single-shot laser that is directed at a distant target. During

6175-424: The longitudinal axis and 20 g (200 m/s ) along perpendicular axes. In June 1954, the warhead names Mark 25, Mark 30 and Mark 31 were formally adopted. The air force would be responsible for the rocket systems, including the arming and fusing system, while the AEC would supply the warhead and associated assembly, testing and handling equipment. The rocket for the warhead was initially named Ding Dong and

6270-407: The midst of the Cold War. It highlighted the dangers posed by nuclear weapons and called for world leaders to seek peaceful resolutions to international conflict. The signatories included eleven pre-eminent intellectuals and scientists, including Albert Einstein , who signed it just days before his death on April 18, 1955. A few days after the release, philanthropist Cyrus S. Eaton offered to sponsor

6365-536: The military establishment have questioned the usefulness of such weapons in the current military climate. According to an advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice in 1996, the use of (or threat of use of) such weapons would generally be contrary to the rules of international law applicable in armed conflict, but the court did not reach an opinion as to whether or not the threat or use would be lawful in specific extreme circumstances such as if

6460-408: The missiles before they land or implementing civil defense measures using early-warning systems to evacuate citizens to safe areas before an attack. Weapons designed to threaten large populations or to deter attacks are known as strategic weapons . Nuclear weapons for use on a battlefield in military situations are called tactical weapons . Critics of nuclear war strategy often suggest that

6555-428: The remains of the split atomic nuclei. Many fission products are either highly radioactive (but short-lived) or moderately radioactive (but long-lived), and as such, they are a serious form of radioactive contamination . Fission products are the principal radioactive component of nuclear fallout . Another source of radioactivity is the burst of free neutrons produced by the weapon. When they collide with other nuclei in

6650-446: The same time, it was proposed that the weapon be fitted with a Permissive Action Link (PAL), consisting of a five-digit coded switch. This was accepted and implemented on the subsequent W45 Mod 2. When the Mod 2 weapon was incorporated into its new protective case, the weapon became the W45 Mod 3. Early production of the Mod 3 began in July 1965. The MADM was retired in 1984. The weapon was

6745-486: The selection of the correct yield for each particular target. These tables accounted for various employment particulars such as depth of burial, fallout considerations, and minimum safe separation distances between adjacent weapons and personnel. This article related to nuclear weaponry is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about the Cold War is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . W25 (nuclear warhead) The W25

6840-470: The stockpile in March 1962. The W25 was retired in 1984. In October 1953, it was recommended that a lightweight atomic demolition munition (ADM) be developed. The device would be 15 inches (380 mm) in diameter, 30 inches (760 mm) in length, weigh less than 200 pounds (91 kg) and be capable of disassembly into 40-pound (18 kg) packages. The application was cancelled in favor of ADMs based on

6935-402: The surrounding material, the neutrons transmute those nuclei into other isotopes, altering their stability and making them radioactive. The most commonly used fissile materials for nuclear weapons applications have been uranium-235 and plutonium-239 . Less commonly used has been uranium-233 . Neptunium-237 and some isotopes of americium may be usable for nuclear explosives as well, but it

7030-498: The survival of the state were at stake. Another deterrence position is that nuclear proliferation can be desirable. In this case, it is argued that, unlike conventional weapons, nuclear weapons deter all-out war between states, and they succeeded in doing this during the Cold War between the U.S. and the Soviet Union . In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Gen. Pierre Marie Gallois of France, an adviser to Charles de Gaulle , argued in books like The Balance of Terror: Strategy for

7125-535: The use of ADMs tactically in both offensive and defensive operations. In offensive operations, ADMs are described as being useful for improving flank and rear security of a unit, impeding counterattacks, and assisting in enemy entrapment. ADM employment manuals describe the use of ADMs defensively for combat engineering purposes. Possible targets described include bridges, dams, canals, tunnels, airfields, railroad marshaling yards, ports and industrial plants, and power facilities. Extensive tables were provided to enable

7220-668: The use of nuclear materials. Sandia conducted research into the optimum size of an air-to-air missile warhead and, in May 1954, the Atomic Energy Commission began development of an air-to-air nuclear warhead. In May 1954, the military characteristics were specified for a 15 inches (380 mm) warhead. It would be capable of remaining at the ready condition for 30 days, be capable of 50 hours flight time at altitudes of up to 100,000 feet (30,000 m), and withstand temperatures of −90 to 165 °F (−68 to 74 °C). The warhead would be able to withstand acceleration of 100 g (980 m/s ) along

7315-469: The weapon operational by 1957. Because of the numbers required, they requested that quantity production of the weapon begin but, because no firm production directive had been received, the AEC denied the request. The military liaison committee subsequently requested the warhead be in production by the rocket availability date of January 1957. The weapon was to have maximum interchangeability of components with other weapons, provided that it did not compromise

7410-408: The weapon received a significant redesign and a new developmental name: XW-45-X1. This, however, increased the weapon diameter to 12.75 inches (324 mm) and made the warhead incompatible with Little John without substantial redesign. In the interest of economics and stockpile simplification, it was decided to revert to the original XW-45 design in February 1959. In January 1960, the MADM version of

7505-446: The weapon system and difficult to defend against the delivery of the weapon during a potential conflict. This can mean keeping weapon locations hidden, such as deploying them on submarines or land mobile transporter erector launchers whose locations are difficult to track, or it can mean protecting weapons by burying them in hardened missile silo bunkers. Other components of nuclear strategies included using missile defenses to destroy

7600-425: The weapon's sealed design. The weapon would be capable of storage in a ready-to-operate condition for at least 30 days, with 90 days being desirable, as long as such a requirement did not delay the production date. The warhead would be capable of operation up to 75,000 feet (23,000 m), with 100,000 feet (30,000 m) being desirable. Diameter would be 17.25 inches (438 mm) with length and weight being held at

7695-631: The world where there exists a single nuclear-weapon state. Aside from the public opinion that opposes proliferation in any form, there are two schools of thought on the matter: those, like Mearsheimer, who favored selective proliferation, and Waltz, who was somewhat more non- interventionist . Interest in proliferation and the stability-instability paradox that it generates continues to this day, with ongoing debate about indigenous Japanese and South Korean nuclear deterrent against North Korea . The threat of potentially suicidal terrorists possessing nuclear weapons (a form of nuclear terrorism ) complicates

7790-624: The yield comes from the final fissioning of depleted uranium. Virtually all thermonuclear weapons deployed today use the "two-stage" design described to the right, but it is possible to add additional fusion stages—each stage igniting a larger amount of fusion fuel in the next stage. This technique can be used to construct thermonuclear weapons of arbitrarily large yield. This is in contrast to fission bombs, which are limited in their explosive power due to criticality danger (premature nuclear chain reaction caused by too-large amounts of pre-assembled fissile fuel). The largest nuclear weapon ever detonated,

7885-583: Was a small nuclear warhead that was developed by the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory for air-defense use. It was a fission device with a nominal yield of 1.7 kt. The W25 was used for the MB-1 "Ding Dong" , an unguided air-to-air rocket used by US Northrop F-89 Scorpion , F-101 Voodoo , and F-106 Delta Dart interceptor aircraft , and Canadian CF-101 Voodoo aircraft, as part of NATO nuclear sharing . The MB-1 entered service in 1957 and

7980-452: Was an implosion weapon and was of the sealed design. Nuclear weapon A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions , either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb ), producing a nuclear explosion . Both bomb types release large quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter . The first test of

8075-439: Was designed to be economical in nuclear material, having a diameter of less than 15 inches (380 mm), and it was hoped that the device could be broken down into sub-40 pounds (18 kg) components for carriage and assembly in the field. The program languished for several years, with Los Alamos and Sandia in a joint letter suggesting that warheads in the range of 12 to 18 inches (300 to 460 mm) were possible. At one point,

8170-493: Was desirable to have the ability for a human to make confirmation that an unidentified aircraft was indeed hostile before engaging it. Sandia National Laboratory had been investigating the high-altitude operation of nuclear weapons since 1952 and, in August 1953, concluded that the only major concern was high-voltage breakdown at low pressures. That meant that existing weapon-firing sets were unsuitable, so solutions were examined. It

8265-462: Was eventually redesignated the AIR-2 Genie . Limited numbers were carried by Air National Guard F-106 aircraft until December 1984 . The W25 program began in March 1951, when the Division of Military Application suggested that the use of nuclear weapons to blunt enemy aircraft attacks be examined. However, little immediate action was taken because the state-of-the-art in both warheads and missiles

8360-449: Was eventually selected for the rocket. In June 1956, informal comments were made about the lack of a boosted W25 warhead. Albuquerque Operations Office replied that no formal request for such a weapon had ever been received and the military promptly furnished such a request. In July 1956, a preliminary study was concluded stating that, because of the size limitations of the Genie application,

8455-482: Was eventually settled on. In January 1955, the joint study group was dissolved and reformed as the Air-to-Air Rocket Joint Project Group. By that point, the weapon weighed approximately 230 lb (100 kg). In March 1955, the assistant secretary for defense authorized the full development of the rocket and its warhead. In the same month, the air force expressed an urgent desire to have

8550-409: Was later abandoned. At this point, it was believed the design would have a maximum diameter of 11.75 inches (298 mm), a length of 27 inches (690 mm), and a weight of 150 pounds (68 kg). Major components of the weapon were sourced from other weapon systems. In September 1957, the warhead operational availability date was delayed by 14 months. In February 1958, for still-classified reasons,

8645-493: Was not yet advanced enough for the proposal to be practicable. Technology soon improved and, by February 1952, the Joint Chiefs of Staff requested that the Joint Air Board study the matter. The study was completed in January 1953, which suggested that gun-, rocket- and missile-carried warheads were possible, launched from interceptor and bomber aircraft. The board specifically recommended the development of nuclear warheads for

8740-480: Was optimized for carriage on the F-86 Sabre , F-89 Scorpion and F-100 Super Sabre . The rocket was to be 15.5 inches (390 mm) in diameter, but excursions of up to 18 inches (460 mm) were to be investigated. A study of yield to kill probability was published in November 1954. While higher yields increased the lethal radius of the weapon, higher yields required the launching range to be increased to allow for

8835-532: Was pressurized to 15 pounds per square inch (100 kPa) at the factory to prevent high-voltage arc over at altitude. In June 1955, the air force requested an acceleration of the warhead production program, which would produce an interim warhead for short-term deployment that would be replaced by production Mark 25 warheads as they became available. The interim warheads were to be called the EC-25 (emergency capability warhead), while production warheads were to be called

8930-525: Was soon decided that the problem could be solved through the use of a sealed nuclear weapon, with the weapon filled with high-pressure air to prevent electric arcing . In October 1953, the air defense warhead programs took an unusual turn in that they avoided the then-trend to highly standardize nuclear and non-nuclear components of weapons. This was justified on the basis that air defense warheads needed to be readily available for use, needed to be highly resistant to premature detonation, and needed to economise

9025-744: Was the Special Atomic Demolition Munition , or SADM, sometimes popularly known as a suitcase nuke . This is a nuclear bomb that is man-portable, or at least truck-portable, and though of a relatively small yield (one or two kilotons) is sufficient to destroy important tactical targets such as bridges, dams, tunnels, important military or commercial installations, etc. either behind enemy lines or pre-emptively on friendly territory soon to be overtaken by invading enemy forces. These weapons require plutonium fuel and are particularly "dirty". They also demand especially stringent security precautions in their storage and deployment. Small "tactical" nuclear weapons were deployed for use as antiaircraft weapons. Examples include

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