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U.S. Lab Testing Concrete Bunker Busting H-Bomb
Popular Mechanics ^ | November 28, 2001 | Sandia National Labratories, New Mexico

Posted on 11/28/2001 7:34:52 PM PST by umbra

A liitle concrete goes a long way-especially when it is strategically placed around an underground bunker.

Intelligence sources say military leaders hostile to the United States have relocated their command and control facilities, and possibly their secret nuclear and biological weapons development programs, to buried bunkers.

To keep ahead of the curve Sandia National Labratories in Albuquerque, N.M., is testing a new kind of bunker busting nuke, the B61-11.

Shown above as a 7.5 percent scale model, the case is shaped for maximum ground penetration.

Its warhead can inflict varying levels of damage.

The bunker buster is likely to be the first tested should a proposal to resume underground nuclear testing win congressional approval.


TOPICS: Breaking News; Business/Economy; News/Current Events
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Osama, come on down your're the next contestant!!- this one might have your name on it.

Why waste good American soldiers in booby trapped caves looking for human roaches like the Taliban?

1 posted on 11/28/2001 7:34:52 PM PST by umbra
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To: umbra
It would be really stupid to use nuclear weapons unless we have to.
2 posted on 11/28/2001 7:39:06 PM PST by garycooper
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To: umbra
Read it and weep, SADAMN!
3 posted on 11/28/2001 7:39:33 PM PST by AmericaUnited
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To: umbra
Cool.

:

4 posted on 11/28/2001 7:45:40 PM PST by ppaul
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To: garycooper
I agree. But it would also be stupid not to have the right weapons on hand if we need them, in case we are attacked first with CBN.
5 posted on 11/28/2001 7:46:04 PM PST by Cicero
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To: umbra
"The bunker buster is likely to be the first tested should a proposal to resume underground nuclear testing win congressional approval."

May I be the first to nominate the new testing grounds...? Starts with "A", and ends with, "-stan." Testing should be continued with all vigor until success is achieved.

6 posted on 11/28/2001 7:50:38 PM PST by Joe 6-pack
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To: umbra
It never hurts to remind the rats that their holes in the ground might NOT be deep enough.

Good idea! Full speed ahead.

7 posted on 11/28/2001 7:53:00 PM PST by Agent Smith
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To: umbra
That's one big honkin lab.
8 posted on 11/28/2001 7:54:41 PM PST by breakem
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To: garycooper
"It would be really stupid to use nuclear weapons unless we have to."

We didn't have to use them in WWII. We ultimately would have taken Japan without their use...would've cost about 1M American lives (estimates). We did use them, technically, without, "having to." Who defines the threshold, weighs the impact of their usage on our standing in the international community, long term ramifications, the cost of U.S. lives? You? It is matters such as these that make it incumbent on the U.S. electorate to put into office, moral, wise, judicious leaders on whose shoulders the weight of the world will rest. Thank GOD this conundrum did not present itself between '93 and '00. We are fortunate to have the leadership we do now, and if you are not confident the decision to use or not use nukes you need to work harder for your candidate next time around.

9 posted on 11/28/2001 7:57:05 PM PST by Joe 6-pack
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To: garycooper
You're right. It's not time, yet.

It would be really stupid to use nuclear weapons unless we have to

10 posted on 11/28/2001 7:58:52 PM PST by GOPJ
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To: garycooper
It would be really stupid to use nuclear weapons unless we have to.

That is what a constitutional democratically elected representative government is all about. A time may comes when you just sit back and hope you elected the right people. I'm confident.

11 posted on 11/28/2001 7:58:54 PM PST by LarryLied
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To: garycooper
Maybe so, but it's always good to have options.
12 posted on 11/28/2001 8:06:12 PM PST by Hillary 666
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To: umbra
The B61 family has been around for decades.

There are thought to be 750 of these bombs in the active stockpile, along with about 600 B61-3, -4, and -10 tactical bombs.6 The B61 family of weapons can be configured with a wide variety of yields, including 0.3, 1.5, 5, 10, 45, 60, 60, 80, 170, and 340 kilotons.7

In recent years, many military strategists have advocated the deployment and use of very small tactical nuclear weapons against Third-World adversaries, especially in earth-penetrating roles.8 The two lowest yields of the B61 family lie well within this so-called "mininuke" range. The percent of blast energy converted into shock waves in the earth is extremely sensitive to the depth of the blast. Thus even a small increase in earth penetrating capability can greatly affect the military utility of a nuclear weapon to hold deeply buried and hardened targets at risk. Hardening of the B61 to allow very high altitude release, with consequent high velocity ground impact, apparently provides such an increase in capability.

13 posted on 11/28/2001 8:22:58 PM PST by blam
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To: umbra
What if we used an underground nuke and didn't tell anybody?

If you want to flush out the liberals, just mention nukes and SUVs, LOL.

Will a Yugo pull a 6 horse trailer?

14 posted on 11/28/2001 8:24:29 PM PST by Z-28
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To: umbra

A B61-11 Being dropped by a B2 Bomber

15 posted on 11/28/2001 8:25:01 PM PST by blam
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To: garycooper; LarryLied
It would be really stupid to use nuclear weapons unless we have to. Have to what? Lose several American lives in order to kill Osama, when one or two CBB H-Bombs will accomplish the mission?
16 posted on 11/28/2001 8:58:56 PM PST by onyx
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To: umbra
The pakistanis were allowed to take out helicopters and passenger jets full of paki people from within the taliban. We hope that somewhere in that airlift they got osama's family. The rest is up to the bomb.
17 posted on 11/28/2001 9:31:57 PM PST by Red Jones
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To: Joe 6-pack
I think we had to in Japan. Our experiences in Okinawa proved that the Japaneese could inflict horrendous casualties. It all depends on what your definition of "have to" is. I don't think we're at that point yet, and it seems that Bush feels the same.
18 posted on 11/28/2001 9:36:45 PM PST by garycooper
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Comment #19 Removed by Moderator

Comment #20 Removed by Moderator


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