A Comparison of Nuclear Explosion Effectiveness against Underground Terrorists.

Bluebay | OCT 26 01 | VANNROX

[vannrox]

I compiled this list. It concerns the current discussion on tactical nuclear weapons and their applications against Bin Laden.

[vannrox]

52 Kton should read 52,000 Kton. Sorry.

[1000Mhz]

The largest explosion ever conducted was 61,000 Kton, and the largest weapon ever stocked in the US arsnel was 52 Kton.

What the heck have you been smokin? There are tons of weapons in the megaton + range. The largest detonated was over 50 megatons which dwarfs this kiloton stuff.

Buh-bye.

[CatOwner]

Although it was corrected, 52,000 Ktons is 52 Megatons. You both are talking the same story. Geez, the math education in this country ...

[1000Mhz]

I posted that while the other one was being posted so I did not see that correction.

However, it is appropriate to talk in terms of megatons, not thousands of kilitons.

If you win the 10 million dollar lotttery, are you going to scream "I won ten thousand thousand dollars!"

I didn't think so.

[MaxwellWolf]

Screw the treaty. There is no time to worry about this crap when our survival is at stake. Dead people and countries don't have to worry about rules.

[onedoug]

A megaire.

[Diogenesis]

Thank you.

===========================

""One senior adviser to Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said that the Iraqi leader would not be deterred by current U.S. nuclear weapons 'because he knows a U.S. President
would not drop a 100-kiloton bomb on Baghdad' and destroy the entire city," Walter Pincus of The Washington Post reported on April 15. The implication is that if the United States
builds a bunker-buster, it would feel free to use the weapon. "

No wonder they have felt free to give us Nile Fever, Anthrax and 911.

So far, these weapons have not deterred because they are only potential energy.

[Taxbilly]

OK now let's pick one and drop the darn thing.

[CatOwner]

Yeah, except most people in this country can't relate a kiloton to a megaton. Most are too deficient in mathematics to understand kilo- and mega- anything. Having all of the pictures specified as kilotons does make it easier to understand the relative amounts. I say we start with 1 megaton bombs and go from there! ;)

[onedoug]

...or 1Ghz?

[vannrox]

[Cobra64]

Instead of dropping a bunker blaster ON a cave where it may not reach the objective penetration for a cave under thousands of feet of granite (like our military operations in Cheyenne Mt.,CO), Why not mount one of the mini-nukes onto the nose a laser guided rocket and laser guide the rocket IN-TO a cave?

This would take care of the "under ground" terrorists hiding IN the cave. Those not mist-i-fied by the explosion, could dance and cheer while letting the radiation and their biological weapons overwhelm them while the entrance to the cave crumbles shut.

No atmospheric radiation, the bad guys are with their allah, and we get a significant military score.

No muss, no fuss!

[Kevin Curry]

Although it was corrected, 52,000 Ktons is 52 Megatons.

Also 104 billion pounds or 1.664 trillion ounces.

[Vinomori]

necessity is the mother

[glock rocks]

The United States would be reneging on its pledge not to develop new nuclear weapons, and this would violate the spirit if not the letter of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, which are geared to the elimination of nuclear weapons, not the making of new ones.

after all, gotta be nuclear pc... whilst the chinese and north koreans pass us up. thanks, x42.

great post, vannrox

[jimtorr]

Explosivley impressive. Thanks. Hopefully it will dampen the eagerness of some to use these things. I do support the use if someone unleashes a mass bio or chem or radiological attack on the U.S., if we can figure out who done it. I won't like it, but it will be necessary.

I never knew how small the micro nukes are, or that the B61 was capable of a yield under 1kt. These would be the bombs to convert into bunker-busters, I would think. I wonder if they were ever made?

[Economist_MA]

Given your screenname, you gotta be kidding.

[Brett66]

Excellent post. Here's a couple of interesting links:

High energy weapons archive

Cobalt Bombs(doomsday weapons)

[95Tarheel]

I could be wrong, but I think the reason is that the biggest explosion the US ever set off was more like 15 Mtons. (Castle... Bravo, I think) Therefore, a US picture of a 51 Mton explosion doesn't exist. (I think the US might have made some bombs that big though.) The Soviets detonated the largest device, and I think the estimates are it was 50+ Mtons. If anyone knows of where I can get a picture of this, I would be grateful!

As an aside, I've read that there is no practicality to building a weapon capable of anything more than 200 Mtons b/c the additional explosive force cannot practically be directed toward the earth's surface, and would instead blow a hole in the atmosphere.

Cool pictures- I'm saving some!