India's 'Brahmastra' can destroy entire Pakistan in a blink - 1000 Times More Destructive than Atomic Bomb
The recent military conflict between india and pakistan, which was sparked by the pahalgam terror attack on april 22 and Operation Sindoor, a series of targeted precision strikes by the indian military on terrorist targets inside the enemy nation, brought the two countries perilously close to a nuclear exchange.
Pakistan played the nuclear bluff as usual, saying that if its "existence" was threatened, it would have no choice but to employ the nuclear option. But in the midst of the nuclear saber-rattling, pakistan frequently overlooks the fact that, although having a nuclear arsenal nearly equal to India's, its nuclear weapons are far less sophisticated and subpar.
Recent sources claim that although india and pakistan have nearly equal numbers of nuclear weapons (180 and 170, respectively), India's arsenals are significantly more sophisticated and superior than those of its bitter rival. For instance, india possesses thermonuclear weapons, sometimes known as hydrogen bombs, which are said to be 1000 times more deadly than any conventional nuclear weapon, but pakistan is thought to possess just atomic bombs.
What makes the Hydrogen Bomb more destructive than Atom Bombs?
The first nuclear weapon ever created by humanity, the atom bomb, like the ones that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki near the end of World war II in 1945, works by causing atoms inside the fissile material to violently split apart, a process known as nuclear fission, which results in a sudden burst of enormous energy.
Depending on the yield, this process unleashes a burst of energy that causes a blast wave, leveling large areas of the surrounding area. However, a hydrogen bomb, also called a thermonuclear bomb, is a multi-stage weapon in which the initial blast is produced by nuclear fission of uranium or plutonium atoms in the first stage. The weapon's hydrogen gas intensifies the blast, which in turn causes atoms to fuse in the second stage, releasing an exponentially greater amount of energy—possibly more than a thousand times that of an atomic bomb.
Only six countries have thermonuclear weapons
According to a Washington Post article, india is the only nation on Earth thought to have tested thermonuclear weapons, along with the US, UK, Russia, China, and France. india reportedly tested five nuclear bombs in 1998, including a hydrogen bomb.
Since nuclear weapons are highly classified and little is known about the nuclear capabilities of nuclear-armed nations, the belief that pakistan does not possess thermonuclear bombs may just be conjecture. The heaviest thermonuclear weapon ever tested was the US-developed 15-megaton hydrogen bomb known as Castle Bravo, which produced a blast wave that was thought to be more than 1000 times more potent than the atomic bomb detonated on Hiroshima. Built by the former USSR and now in Russia's arsenal, the Tsar Bomba is thought to be the most potent thermonuclear weapon in the world, with a yield of 50 megatons.
Why thermonuclear weapons are limited to a few countries
The 'simple' principle of nuclear fission, which uses enriched uranium as the fissile material to initiate the nuclear reaction, makes atomic bombs 'easier' to construct, according to nuclear physicists.
However, only a few countries have succeeded in splitting plutonium atoms in the first stage and then starting a fusion reaction in the second stage of a hydrogen bomb, according to professor Alex Wellerstein, a nuclear weapons expert at the Stevens Institute of Technology.
Seven years after developing the first nuclear weapon in history, the united states spent an estimated $39 billion on nuclear research, development, and testing to create the first hydrogen bomb. The united states produced four atom bombs: two were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, one was utilized for testing, and the fourth was never used.
In contrast to the 13-pound 'Fat Man' atom bomb with plutonium fuel that destroyed Nagasaki, the 'Little Boy' atomic bomb, which was dropped on Hiroshima, carried 140 pounds of uranium and had a 15 kiloton yield.
Pakistan played the nuclear bluff as usual, saying that if its "existence" was threatened, it would have no choice but to employ the nuclear option. But in the midst of the nuclear saber-rattling, pakistan frequently overlooks the fact that, although having a nuclear arsenal nearly equal to India's, its nuclear weapons are far less sophisticated and subpar.
Recent sources claim that although india and pakistan have nearly equal numbers of nuclear weapons (180 and 170, respectively), India's arsenals are significantly more sophisticated and superior than those of its bitter rival. For instance, india possesses thermonuclear weapons, sometimes known as hydrogen bombs, which are said to be 1000 times more deadly than any conventional nuclear weapon, but pakistan is thought to possess just atomic bombs.
What makes the Hydrogen Bomb more destructive than Atom Bombs?
The first nuclear weapon ever created by humanity, the atom bomb, like the ones that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki near the end of World war II in 1945, works by causing atoms inside the fissile material to violently split apart, a process known as nuclear fission, which results in a sudden burst of enormous energy.
Depending on the yield, this process unleashes a burst of energy that causes a blast wave, leveling large areas of the surrounding area. However, a hydrogen bomb, also called a thermonuclear bomb, is a multi-stage weapon in which the initial blast is produced by nuclear fission of uranium or plutonium atoms in the first stage. The weapon's hydrogen gas intensifies the blast, which in turn causes atoms to fuse in the second stage, releasing an exponentially greater amount of energy—possibly more than a thousand times that of an atomic bomb.
Only six countries have thermonuclear weapons
According to a Washington Post article, india is the only nation on Earth thought to have tested thermonuclear weapons, along with the US, UK, Russia, China, and France. india reportedly tested five nuclear bombs in 1998, including a hydrogen bomb.
Since nuclear weapons are highly classified and little is known about the nuclear capabilities of nuclear-armed nations, the belief that pakistan does not possess thermonuclear bombs may just be conjecture. The heaviest thermonuclear weapon ever tested was the US-developed 15-megaton hydrogen bomb known as Castle Bravo, which produced a blast wave that was thought to be more than 1000 times more potent than the atomic bomb detonated on Hiroshima. Built by the former USSR and now in Russia's arsenal, the Tsar Bomba is thought to be the most potent thermonuclear weapon in the world, with a yield of 50 megatons.
Why thermonuclear weapons are limited to a few countries
The 'simple' principle of nuclear fission, which uses enriched uranium as the fissile material to initiate the nuclear reaction, makes atomic bombs 'easier' to construct, according to nuclear physicists.
However, only a few countries have succeeded in splitting plutonium atoms in the first stage and then starting a fusion reaction in the second stage of a hydrogen bomb, according to professor Alex Wellerstein, a nuclear weapons expert at the Stevens Institute of Technology.
Seven years after developing the first nuclear weapon in history, the united states spent an estimated $39 billion on nuclear research, development, and testing to create the first hydrogen bomb. The united states produced four atom bombs: two were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, one was utilized for testing, and the fourth was never used.
In contrast to the 13-pound 'Fat Man' atom bomb with plutonium fuel that destroyed Nagasaki, the 'Little Boy' atomic bomb, which was dropped on Hiroshima, carried 140 pounds of uranium and had a 15 kiloton yield.