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w-78 vs. Castle Bravo - Comparison of sizes
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w-78
Castle Bravo

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w-78
Castle Bravo
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w-78

w-78
w-78
Blast Radius Blast Radius4950km
Fireball Radius Fireball Radius 0.630km
Height Height21,3m
Kilotons Kilotons350kt
Radiation Radius Radiation Radiuskm

The W78 thermonuclear warhead is the warhead used on most of the United States LGM-30G Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), along with the MK-12A reentry vehicle which carried the warhead. Minuteman IIIs initially deployed with the older W62 warhead; the W78 was deployed starting in December 1979 onto 300 missiles, three warheads per missile. Declassified records indicate a total of 1,083 W78s were produced. The W78 was designed at Los Alamos National Laboratory starting in 1974.



The design is thought to combine the secondary (fusion) stage design of older ICBM warheads such as the W50 with a more modern primary stage (see Teller-Ulam design for more details). The W78 has a publicly announced yield of 335–350 kilotons of TNT (1.40–1.46 PJ).Dimensions of the W78 are unknown, but it fits within the MK-12A reentry vehicle, which is conically shaped, 21.3 inches in diameter at its base and 71.3 inches long. The W78 is estimated to weigh 700–800 pounds (317–363 kg).

Source: Wikipedia
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Castle Bravo

Castle Bravo
Castle Bravo
Blast Radius Blast Radius11.3km
Fireball Radius Fireball Radius 3.710km
Kilotons Kilotons15000kt
Radiation Radius Radiation Radius3.630km

Castle Bravo was the first in a series of high-yield thermonuclear weapon design tests conducted by the United States at Bikini Atoll, Marshall Islands, as part of Operation Castle. Detonated on March 1, 1954, the device was the most powerful nuclear device detonated by the United States and its first lithium deuteride fueled thermonuclear weapon. Castle Bravo's yield was 15 megatons of TNT, 2.5 times the predicted 6.0 megatons, due to unforeseen additional reactions involving lithium-7, which led to the unexpected radioactive contamination of areas to the east of Bikini Atoll. At the time, it was the most powerful artificial explosion in history. Fallout, the heaviest of which was in the form of pulverized surface coral from the detonation, fell on residents of Rongelap and Utirik atolls, while the more particulate and gaseous fallout spread around the world.



The inhabitants of the islands were not evacuated until three days later and suffered radiation sickness. Twenty-three crew members of the Japanese fishing vessel Daigo Fukuryū Maru ("Lucky Dragon No. 5") were also contaminated by the heavy fallout, experiencing acute radiation syndrome. The blast incited international reaction over atmospheric thermonuclear testing.The Bravo Crater is located at 11°41′50″N 165°16′19″E. The remains of the Castle Bravo causeway are at 11°42′6″N 165°17′7″E.

Source: Wikipedia

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