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The B61 nuclear bomb is the primary thermonuclear gravity bomb in the United States Enduring Stockpile following the end of the Cold War.It is a low-to-intermediate yield strategic and tactical nuclear weapon featuring a two-stage radiation implosion design.
The overall B61 bomb is 13.3 inches (340 mm) in diameter and 141 inches (3,600 mm) long, and weighs approximately 700 pounds (320 kg) across most mods. The nuclear device within the outer B61 envelope is probably the same overall dimensions and weight as the W80 warhead, which is 11.8 inches (300 mm) in diameter, 31.4 inches (800 mm) long and ...
The Air Force now has the B-61-12 tactical nuclear bomb ready for operational use on its 20 B-2 Spirit stealth bombers.
Some variable yield nuclear warheads such as the B61 nuclear bomb have been produced in both tactical and strategic versions. Whereas the lowest selectable yield of a tactical B61 (Mod 3 and Mod 4) is 0.3 kilotons (300 tons), [ 19 ] modern PAL mechanisms ensure that centralized political control is maintained over each weapon, including their ...
The Bush administration was unsuccessful in its goal to develop a guided low-yield nuclear weapon, however, in 2010 President Barack Obama began funding and development for what would become the B61-12, a smart guided low-yield nuclear bomb developed off of the B61 “dumb bomb”. [35]
Weapons Storage and Security System vault in raised position holding a B61 nuclear bomb.The vault is within a Protective Aircraft Shelter General Roger Brady being shown a dummy nuclear weapon in a Weapons Storage and Security System at Volkel Air Base
The use of beryllium and highly toxic beryllium oxide material as neutron reflector layers was a major health hazard to bomb manufacturer and maintenance staff. The long term stability of plutonium metal, which may lose strength, crack, or otherwise degrade over time is also a concern.
Log–log plot comparing the yield (in kilotonnes) and mass (in kilograms) of various nuclear weapons developed by the United States.. The explosive yield of a nuclear weapon is the amount of energy released such as blast, thermal, and nuclear radiation, when that particular nuclear weapon is detonated, usually expressed as a TNT equivalent (the standardized equivalent mass of trinitrotoluene ...