B83 nuclear bomb
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The B83 nuclear weapon is a variable-yield gravity bomb developed by the United States in the late 1970s, entering service in 1983. It was based partly on the earlier B77 program, which was terminated due to cost overruns. The first underground test detonation took place on 15 December 1984. It was designed at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
The B83 replaced several earlier weapons, including the B28, B43, and ultra-high yield B53. It was the first U.S. nuclear weapon designed from the start to avoid accidental detonation, with the use of 'insensitive' explosive in the trigger lens system. Its internal design and layout are similar to the smaller B61, with the warhead mounted in the forward part of the weapon to make the bomb deliberately nose-heavy. It was intended for high-speed carriage (up to Mach 2.0) and delivery at either high or low altitude. For the latter role, it is equipped with a parachute retardation system, with a 46 ft (14 m) Kevlar ribbon parachute capable of rapid deceleration. It can be employed in free fall, retarded, contact, or laydown modes, for either air burst or ground burst detonation. Security features include next-generation permissive action link (PAL) locks, and a command disablement system (CDS), rendering the weapon tactically useless without a nuclear yield.
The bomb is 12 ft (3.67 m) long, with a diameter of 18 in (457 mm); the actual nuclear explosive package, judging from published drawings, occupies some 3 or 4 feet (90 to 120 cm) in the forward part of the bomb case. The bomb weighs approximately 2,400 lb (1,089 kg); the location of the lifting lugs shows that the greater part of the total mass is contained in the nuclear explosive. It has a variable yield: the destructive power is adjustable from somewhere in the low kiloton range up to a maximum of 1.2 megatons.
The B83 can be deployed by a wide range of U.S. aircraft including:
About 650 B83s were built, and the weapon remains in service as part of the United States "Enduring Stockpile."
[edit] Earth-penetrating warheads
The B83 is one of the weapons which has been considered for use in the Robust nuclear earth penetrator program, otherwise known as Nuclear bunker buster. While most efforts have focused on the smaller B61-11 nuclear bomb, Los Alamos National Laboratory was also analyzing the use of the B83 in this role.
This weapon has been considered for use against any Near Earth Asteroids, with six weapons being used to 'knock' an asteroid off course, should it pose a risk to the earth.
As of early 2006, the RNEP program has been halted by Congress.[citation needed]
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