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What conventional explosives are used to trigger a nuclear weapon?
Wiki User
∙ 11y ago
For uranium fueled atomic bombs ordinary gunpowders are adequate to assemble a critical mass without a fizzle.
For plutonium fueled atomic bombs high explosives must be used to assemble a critical mass without a fizzle. The first such bombs used Composition B (a predecessor of modern C-4) and Baritol. Modern bombs use shock and fire resistant plastic bonded explosives.
Wiki User
∙ 11y ago
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Can nuclear weapon explode if nuclear tipped missile is intercepted in air by the anti ballistic missile?
Maybe. If ABM was nuclear itself, it will probably cause fratricide in the warhead causing it to dud. If ABM is conventional it might detonate conventional explosives in warhead. Whether this produces yield or not depends on how safe the warhead was designed against one point detonation nuclear yield.
How does a neutron bomb explode?
A neutron bomb is a form of nuclear weapon. It explodes in several steps. In the first step, control circuits fire electronic blasting caps cause conventional explosives to detonate. They are shaped in such as way that the explosion crushes a ball of nuclear material (mainly plutonium) causing that to produce nuclear fission (an atomic explosion). THAT serves as the trigger to a nuclear fusion explosion- (similar to the hydrogen bomb). This releases heat, blast, and neutrons.
How do you dispose of a nuclear weapon?
The US currently disposes of its nuclear weapons at the Pantex plant just outside Amarillo, TX, the same plant that assembles new ones and refurbishes/retrofits old ones. The process is roughly the reverse of assembly, with the conventional explosives being burned and the plutonium, uranium, and miscellaneous radioactive materials put in storage.
What is the difference between nuclear and thermonuclear weapons?
Nuclear weapons' yield is derived primarily from fission. Thermonuclear weapon's yield is derived mainly from fusion. Thermonuclear weapons are multistage weapons -- x-rays from a nuclear primary trigger are used to trigger ablation in the pusher of the secondary to compress it, which is responsible for the fusion reaction.
What are some of the things in nuclear weapons?
The subcritical masses of fissile material are in there, obviously. And there will be the conventional chemical explosives that drive the fissile material together and hold it there for a split second. The triggering mechanism is included with the sensor and control package. Some shielding and reflectors will be in there, and so will some materials that "lock out" the subcritical masses to prevent them "engaging" in the event of an accident. There are a few "security" features within the case of the weapon as well. As security concerns color all aspects of nuclear weapon design and construction, we can only speak to this subject matter in general terms.
Is fusion the difference between a nuclear weapon detonation and a conventional explosion?
Yes, the conventional explosives would trigger an explosion of the conventional explosives inside the nuclear bomb which would blow apart the nuclear components of the nuclear bomb, causing significant alpha emitter radiological contamination but no nuclear yield.
Is a dirty bomb a nuclear weapon?
No, a dirty bomb is a radiological weapon. It simply uses conventional explosives to scatter radioisotopes over an area.
What is the power of a nuclear weapon?
The weapons used in World War II had a power of 20,000 kilotons - that means they are equivalent to an explosion of 20,000 tons of conventional explosives (TNT is used for comparison). More recent nuclear weapons have a power measured in megatons (millions of tons of conventional explosives).
What is nuclear weapon?
An explosive device that uses massive conventional explosives to split radioactive atoms and cause a MASSIVE release of energy by nuclear fission or fusion. A BIG BOOM!!!!
Is an bomb or a nuclear weapon more powerful?
If by "bomb" you mean a conventional explosive weapon, then the nuclear weapon is more powerful.
What is a precision nuclear weapon?
The term precision nuclear weapon may be a misnomer, but it is generally used to describe a low yield nuclear weapon (perhaps a few kilotons) that can be delivered with great accuracy on a specific target.The idea is to use this device, which is very small compared to an equivalent conventional weapon, in applications like busting deeply buried bunkers or other large below ground installations. Using a nuclear weapon in this type of application would gain a more assured result than the use of conventional explosives. The catch is that if you have this wonderfully effective weapon with all these superior characteristics, you may be tempted to use it.It may or may not be helpful to compare the precision nuclear weapon to what we call a tactical nuclear weapon. This nuclear device has a low yield (about a kiloton or so) that was designed to be delivered by conventional large-bore cannon or a small missile. The limited blast could be directed in a way that it could destroy something like a concentration of armored vehicles or troops that it would be difficult to do with conventional explosives. Consider that a small tactical nuclear weapon that could fit inside a 155 mm cannon shell would do damage that a thousand tons of TNT would be needed to accomplish.
Can nuclear weapon explode if nuclear tipped missile is intercepted in air by the anti ballistic missile?
Maybe. If ABM was nuclear itself, it will probably cause fratricide in the warhead causing it to dud. If ABM is conventional it might detonate conventional explosives in warhead. Whether this produces yield or not depends on how safe the warhead was designed against one point detonation nuclear yield.
How does a neutron bomb explode?
A neutron bomb is a form of nuclear weapon. It explodes in several steps. In the first step, control circuits fire electronic blasting caps cause conventional explosives to detonate. They are shaped in such as way that the explosion crushes a ball of nuclear material (mainly plutonium) causing that to produce nuclear fission (an atomic explosion). THAT serves as the trigger to a nuclear fusion explosion- (similar to the hydrogen bomb). This releases heat, blast, and neutrons.
Could nuclear weapon be demolish without explode?
I'm not quite sure how to answer your question, it is a bit ambiguous:If your concern is disassembly of old or unwanted weapons, this is relatively easy, all they do is take them apart roughly the inverse of the way they were assembled. Nuclear weapons are not boobytrapped to prevent disassembly (although some missile warheads may be designed to self destruct with no nuclear yield by single point detonation of their conventional explosives if the PAL unit receives too many incorrect authorization codes).If your concern is safety in accidents, modern nuclear weapons can survive airplane crashes, accidental releases, falls, fires, and many other accidents intact. At the worst the conventional explosives could burn or explode, contaminating the area with alpha emitting material, but there will be no nuclear yield.If your concern is external conventional explosives being used to detonate a nuclear weapon, this is much like accidents, it might cause the conventional explosives to explode but there will be no nuclear yield.JUST CHIMING IN TO ADD: A nuclear bomb has to have exactly the right amount of regular explosives rigged and timed to go off just the right way in the exact correct position to make the fissionable material explode with a nuclear blast. If you abuse the bomb by smashing it, burning it and melting the insides, shooting it, blowing it up with explosives applied to the outside, you'll probably mess up the way the internal explosive charges are supposed to work. So you get a small conventional explosion that might blow up a house, but not a nuclear explosion that would blow up an entire city.
How dangerous nuclear weapon are?
About as dangerous as conventional weapons of the same yield, plus the radiation effects.
How many more times can a nuclear explosions be more powerful than the largest conventional weapon?
theoretically the yield of nuclear weapons is unlimited.
Why is an atomic bomb sometimes called a fisson bomb?
The term atomic bomb is a general one. It refers to any kind of nuclear weapon. But there are basically a couple of different types of nuclear weapon: the fission weapon, and the fusion weapon. (We can split hairs and add some, but let's not.) In a "regular" atomic or nuclear weapon, a fission weapon, subcritical masses of fissile material, usually plutonium, are driven together by conventional explosives and the thing goes off. Boom! There is fission, but no fusion. That differentiates this type of weapon from a fusion device. The term fusion deviceis used to talk about what used to be called the hydrogen bomb. The fusion weapon must have a fission device to create the heat necessary for fusion to occur, and it uses the fission bomb to "trigger" fusion in that light. If someone uses the term "fission bomb" in a presentation, they are not talking about the so-called hydrogen bomb or any fusion weapon - if they are using the term correctly.
