1. Hydrogen bomb
These bombs are made from the isotopes of hydrogen. However, unlike what I originally thought, the hydrogen bomb was NOT used to end World War 2. In fact, the first hydrogen bomb was only detonated on November 1 1952, several years AFTER the end of World War 2. Oops!
2. Uranium bomb
A uranium bomb is created by a slow and complicated process. First, you need to obtain uranium which is highly enriched with over 90% U-235. This poses a problem as most uranium contains 0.7% U-235 at most. This is fortunate as it has helped to control the development and usage of nuclear weapons so far.
Once the required mass is obtained, it must be kept in at least 2 separate pieces until the moment of detonation, the pieces are then forced together quickly, causing an almost instantaneous and powerful explosion.
The first uranium bomb, nicknamed "Little Boy", was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6 1945.
3. Plutonium Bomb
Plutonium-239 is used to make plutonium bombs. This type of bomb is similar to a uranium bomb. However, very little plutonium-239 exists in nature. Unfortunately, plutonium-239 is easily produced by breeder reactors, which generate manmade plutonium-239.
The first plutonium bomb, nicknamed "Fat Man", was dropped on Nagasaki on August 9 1945, leading to the end of World War 2.
Sources:
Saturday, July 17, 2010
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