From fission to fusion: how a neutron bomb works. What is a neutron bomb? Neutron and proton bomb difference

The "cleanest" bomb. Destroys exclusively manpower enemy. Does not destroy buildings. An ideal weapon for mass clearing of territories from communists. This is exactly what the American developers of the “most humane” nuclear weapon - the neutron bomb - believed.

On November 17, 1978, the USSR announced the successful testing of a neutron bomb, and both superpowers once again had parity in the latest weapons. Endless myths began to haunt the neutron bomb.

Myth 1: The neutron bomb only destroys people

That's what we thought at first. The explosion of this thing, in theory, should not have caused damage to equipment and buildings. But only on paper.

In fact, no matter how we design a special atomic weapon, its detonation will still generate a shock wave.

The difference between a neutron bomb is that the shock wave accounts for only 10-20 percent of the released energy, while a conventional atomic bomb- 50 percent.

Explosions of neutron charges at a test site in the Nevada desert in the USA showed that within a radius of several hundred meters the shock wave demolishes all buildings and structures.

Myth 2: the more powerful the neutron bomb, the better

Initially, it was planned to rivet the neutron bomb in several versions - from one kiloton and above. However, calculations and tests have shown that making a bomb larger than one kiloton is not very promising.

So, even if it’s not a bomb, it’s too early to write off the neutron weapon itself as scrap.

The Horsemen of the Apocalypse have acquired new features and become more real than ever before. Nuclear and thermonuclear bombs, biological weapons, “dirty” bombs, ballistic missiles - all this posed a threat of mass destruction for multimillion-dollar cities, countries and continents.

One of the most impressive “horror stories” of that period was the neutron bomb, a type of nuclear weapon specializing in the destruction of biological organisms with minimal impact on inorganic objects. Soviet propaganda paid a lot of attention to this terrible weapon, the invention of the “gloomy genius” of overseas imperialists.

It is impossible to hide from this bomb: neither a concrete bunker, nor a bomb shelter, nor any means of protection will save you. Moreover, after the explosion of a neutron bomb, buildings, enterprises and other infrastructure will remain untouched and fall directly into the clutches of the American military. Stories about new terrible weapon there were so many that in the USSR they began to write jokes about him.

Which of these stories is true and which is fiction? How does a neutron bomb work? Is there similar ammunition in service? Russian army or the US military? Are there any developments in this area these days?

How a neutron bomb works - features of its damaging factors

A neutron bomb is a type of nuclear weapon, the main damaging factor of which is the flow of neutron radiation. Contrary to popular belief, after the explosion of a neutron munition, both a shock wave and light radiation are generated, but most of the energy released turns into a stream fast neutrons. The neutron bomb is a tactical nuclear weapon.

The principle of operation of the bomb is based on the property of fast neutrons to penetrate various barriers much more freely, compared to X-rays, alpha, beta and gamma particles. For example, 150 mm of armor can hold up to 90% of gamma radiation and only 20% of a neutron wave. Roughly speaking, hiding from the penetrating radiation of a neutron weapon is much more difficult than hiding from the radiation of a “conventional” nuclear bomb. It was this property of neutrons that attracted the attention of the military.

A neutron bomb has a nuclear charge of relatively low power, as well as a special block (usually made of beryllium), which is the source of neutron radiation. After a nuclear charge is detonated, most of the explosion energy is converted into hard neutron radiation. The remaining damage factors - shock wave, light pulse, electromagnetic radiation - account for only 20% of the energy.

However, all of the above is just a theory, practical use neutron weapons have some features.

The earth's atmosphere very strongly dampens neutron radiation, so the range of this damaging factor is no greater than the radius of the shock wave. For the same reason, there is no point in producing high-power neutron ammunition - the radiation will quickly fade anyway. Typically, neutron charges have a power of about 1 kT. When it is detonated, neutron radiation damage occurs within a radius of 1.5 km. At a distance of up to 1350 meters from the epicenter, it remains dangerous to human life.

In addition, the neutron flow causes induced radioactivity in materials (for example, armor). If you put a new crew in a tank that has been exposed to neutron weapons (at a distance of about a kilometer from the epicenter), they will receive a lethal dose of radiation within 24 hours.

The widespread belief that a neutron bomb does not destroy material values. After the explosion of such ammunition, both a shock wave and a pulse of light radiation are formed, the zone of severe destruction from which has a radius of approximately one kilometer.

Neutron munitions are not very suitable for use in earth's atmosphere, but they can be very effective in outer space. There is no air there, so neutrons travel unhindered over very long distances. Due to this, various sources of neutron radiation are considered as effective means missile defense. This is the so called beam weapon. True, non-neutrons are usually considered as a source of neutrons. nuclear bombs, and generators of directed neutron beams are so-called neutron guns.

Use them as a means of destruction ballistic missiles and warheads were also proposed by the developers of the Reagan Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) program. When a beam of neutrons interacts with the construction materials of missiles and warheads, induced radiation is generated, which reliably disables the electronics of these devices.

After the idea of ​​a neutron bomb appeared and work began on its creation, methods of protection against neutron radiation began to be developed. First of all, they were aimed at reducing the vulnerability of military equipment and the crew located in it. The main method of protection against such weapons was the manufacture special types armor that absorbs neutrons well. Usually boron was added to them - a material that perfectly captures these elementary particles. It can be added that boron is included in the absorption rods nuclear reactors. Another way to reduce the neutron flux is to add depleted uranium to armor steel.

By the way, almost all Combat vehicles, created in the 60s - 70s of the last century, is maximally protected from most of the damaging factors of a nuclear explosion.

The history of the creation of the neutron bomb

The atomic bombs exploded by the Americans over Hiroshima and Nagasaki are usually considered to be the first generation of nuclear weapons. Its operating principle is based on the fission reaction of uranium or plutonium nuclei. The second generation includes weapons whose operating principle is based on nuclear fusion reactions - these are thermonuclear munitions, the first of which was detonated by the United States in 1952.

Third generation nuclear weapons include ammunition, after the explosion of which the energy is directed to enhance one or another factor of destruction. Neutron bombs are precisely such ammunition.

The creation of a neutron bomb was first discussed in the mid-60s, although its theoretical basis was discussed much earlier - back in the mid-40s. It is believed that the idea of ​​​​creating such a weapon belongs to American physicist Samuel Cohen. Tactical nuclear weapons, despite their significant power, are not very effective against armored vehicles; armor protects the crew well from almost all damaging factors of classical nuclear weapons.

First neutron test combat device was held in the USA in 1963. However, the radiation power turned out to be much lower than what the military had counted on. It took more than ten years to fine-tune the new weapon, and in 1976 the Americans conducted another test of a neutron charge, the results were very impressive. After this, it was decided to create 203-mm shells with a neutron warhead and warheads for Lance tactical ballistic missiles.

Currently, the technologies that make it possible to create neutron weapons are owned by the United States, Russia and China (possibly France). Sources report that mass release production of similar ammunition continued until approximately the mid-80s of the last century. It was then that boron and depleted uranium began to be widely added to the armor of military equipment, which almost completely neutralized the main damaging factor neutron ammunition. This led to a gradual abandonment of this type of weapon. But what the situation really is is unknown. Information of this kind is classified under many classifications of secrecy and is practically not available to the general public.

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era Cold War significantly added phobias to humanity. After Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the horsemen of the Apocalypse acquired new forms and began to seem more real than ever. Nuclear and thermonuclear bombs, biological weapons, “dirty” bombs, ballistic missiles - all this posed a threat of mass destruction for multimillion-dollar megacities, countries and entire continents.

One of the most impressive “horror stories” of that period was the neutron bomb - a type of nuclear weapon, “sharpened” to destroy biological objects, with minimal impact on material values. Soviet propaganda paid a lot of attention to this terrible weapon, invented by the shadowy genius of the overseas imperialists.

It was impossible to hide from this bomb; neither a concrete bunker, nor a bomb shelter, nor other means of protection could save us. Moreover, after the explosion of a neutron bomb, buildings, enterprises and other infrastructure remained untouched and fell directly into the clutches of the American military. There were so many stories about the new terrible weapon that people in the USSR began to write jokes about it.

Which of these stories is true and which is fiction? How does a neutron bomb work? Is there similar ammunition in service with the Russian army or the US armed forces? Are there any developments in this area these days?

How a neutron bomb works - features of damaging factors

A neutron bomb is a type of nuclear weapon, the main damaging factor of which is the flow of neutron radiation. Contrary to popular belief, after a neutron munition explodes, both a shock wave and light radiation are generated, but most of the energy released is converted into a stream of fast neutrons. The neutron bomb is a tactical nuclear weapon.

The operating principle of neutron munitions is based on the property of fast neutrons to penetrate much more strongly through various barriers, compared to X-rays, alpha, beta and gamma particles. For example, 150 mm of armor can hold up to 90% of gamma radiation and only 20% of a neutron wave. Roughly speaking, it is much more difficult to hide from the penetrating radiation of a neutron weapon than from the radiation of a conventional nuclear bomb. It was this property of neutrons that attracted the attention of the military.

A neutron bomb has a low-power nuclear charge, as well as a special block (usually made of beryllium), which is the source of neutron radiation. After a nuclear charge is detonated, most of the explosion energy is converted into hard neutron radiation. The remaining damage factors - shock wave, light pulse, electromagnetic radiation - account for only 20% of the energy.

However, all of the above is just a theory; the practical use of neutron weapons has some nuances.

The earth's atmosphere very strongly dampens neutron radiation, so the range of this damaging factor is no greater than the range of the shock wave. For the same reason, there is no point in producing high-power neutron ammunition - the radiation will quickly fade anyway. Typically, neutron charges have a power of about 1 kT. When it is detonated, neutron radiation damage occurs within a radius of 1.5 km. At a distance of 1350 meters from the epicenter, it is dangerous for human life.

In addition, the flow of neutrons causes induced radioactivity in materials - for example, in armor. If you put a new crew in a ship that has come under the influence of neutron weapons (at a distance of about a kilometer from the epicenter), they will receive a lethal dose of radiation within 24 hours.

The widespread belief that a neutron bomb does not destroy material assets is not true. After the explosion of such ammunition, both a shock wave and a pulse of light radiation are formed, the zone of severe destruction from which has a radius of approximately one kilometer.

Neutron munitions are not very suitable for use in the earth's atmosphere, but they can be very effective in outer space. There is no air there, so neutrons travel unhindered over very long distances. Due to this, various sources of neutron radiation are considered as an effective means of missile defense. This is the so-called beam weapon. True, it is not neutron nuclear bombs that are usually considered as a source of neutrons, but generators of directed neutron beams - the so-called neutron guns.

The developers of Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) program proposed using them as a means to destroy ballistic missiles and warheads. When a beam of neutrons interacts with the construction materials of missiles and warheads, induced radiation is generated, which reliably disables the electronics of these devices.

After the idea of ​​a neutron bomb appeared and work began on its creation, methods of protection against neutron radiation began to be developed. First of all, they were aimed at reducing the vulnerability of military equipment and the crew located in it. The main method of protection against such weapons was the manufacture of special types of armor that absorb neutrons well. Usually they added boron - a material that perfectly captures these elementary particles. It can be added that boron is part of the absorber rods of nuclear reactors. Another way to reduce the neutron flux is to add depleted uranium to armor steel.

In general, almost all military equipment created in the 60s and 70s of the last century is maximally protected from most of the damaging factors of a nuclear explosion.

The history of the creation of the neutron bomb

The atomic bombs exploded by the Americans over Hiroshima and Nagasaki are usually considered to be the first generation of nuclear weapons. Its operating principle is based on the fission reaction of uranium or plutonium nuclei. The second generation includes weapons whose operating principle is based on nuclear fusion reactions - these are thermonuclear munitions, the first of which was detonated by the United States in 1952.

Third generation nuclear weapons include ammunition, after the explosion of which the energy is directed to enhance one or another factor of destruction. Neutron bombs are precisely such ammunition.

The creation of a neutron bomb was first discussed in the mid-60s, although its theoretical basis was discussed much earlier - back in the mid-40s. It is believed that the idea of ​​​​creating such a weapon belongs to the American physicist Samuel Cohen. Tactical nuclear weapons, despite their significant power, are not very effective against armored vehicles; the armor well protected the crew from almost all damaging factors of nuclear weapons.

The first test of a neutron warhead was carried out in the United States in 1963. However, the radiation power turned out to be much lower than what the military had counted on. It took more than ten years to fine-tune the new weapon: in 1976, the Americans conducted another test of a neutron charge, the results of which turned out to be very impressive. After this, it was decided to create 203-mm shells with a neutron warhead and warheads for Lance tactical ballistic missiles.

Currently, the technologies that make it possible to create neutron weapons are owned by the United States, Russia and China (possibly France). Some sources report that the mass production of such ammunition continued until approximately the mid-80s of the last century. At this moment, boron and depleted uranium began to be widely added to the armor of military equipment, which almost completely neutralized the main damaging factor of neutron ammunition. This led to the gradual abandonment of this type of weapon. Although what the situation really is is unknown. Information of this kind is classified under many classifications of secrecy and is practically not available to the general public.

Almost all soviet people remember how the government in the 1980s frightened citizens with new terrible weapons invented by “decaying capitalism.” Political informants in institutions and teachers at school described in the most terrible colors what a danger the neutron bomb, adopted by the United States, poses to all living things. There is no hiding from it in underground bunkers or behind concrete shelters. Body armor and stronger protective equipment will not save you from it. All organisms, in the event of an impact, will die, while buildings, bridges and mechanisms, with the exception of perhaps the epicenter of the explosion, will remain intact. Thus, the country's powerful economy developed socialism will fall into the clutches of the American military.

The insidious neutron bomb operated on a completely different principle than the atomic or hydrogen “Tsar Bomb”, of which the USSR was so proud. During a thermonuclear explosion, there is a powerful release of thermal energy, radiation and atoms carrying a charge, bumping into objects, especially metals, interact with them, are held by them, and therefore the enemy forces hiding behind metal barriers are safe.

Note that neither the Soviet nor the American military thought about the civilian population; all the thoughts of the developers of the new ones were aimed at destroying military power enemy.

But the neutron bomb, the project of which was developed by Samuel Cohen, by the way, back in 1958, was a charge from a mixture of radioactive isotopes of hydrogen: deuterium and especially tritium. As a result of the explosion, a huge number of neutrons are released - particles that have no charge. Being neutral, unlike atoms, they quickly penetrated through solid and liquid physical barriers, bringing death only to organic matter. Therefore, such weapons were called “humane” by the Pentagon.

As stated above, the neutron bomb was invented in the late fifties. In April 1963, its first successful test was carried out at the test site. Since the mid-70s, warheads with neutron charges have been installed on American system defense against Soviet missiles at the Grand Forks base in the state What shocked the Soviet government so much when in August 1981 the US Security Council announced the mass production of neutron weapons? After all, it has already been used for about twenty years!

Behind the Kremlin’s rhetoric about “world peace” was a concern that its own economy was no longer able to “bear” the costs of the military-industrial complex. After all, since the end of World War II, the USSR and the States have constantly competed to create new weapons capable of destroying a potential enemy. Thus, the creation by the Americans led to the production of a similar charge and its carrier TU-4 in the USSR. To attack the Russians - intercontinental nuclear missile"R-7A" - the Americans responded with the Titan-2 missile.

As “our answer to Chamberlain,” back in 1978, the Kremlin instructed nuclear scientists at the classified Arzamas-16 facility to develop and introduce domestic neutron weapons. However, they were unable to catch up and overtake the United States. While laboratory developments were just underway, President Ronald Reagan announced in 1983 the creation of the “ star wars" Compared to this grandiose program, the explosion of a bomb, even with a neutron charge, seemed like a child's firecracker. Since the Americans disposed of obsolete weapons, Russian scientists forgot about them.