The Mark 24 nuclear bomb was an American thermonuclear bomb design, based on the third American thermonuclear bomb test, Castle Yankee. The Mark 24 bomb was tied as the largest weight and size nuclear bomb ever deployed by the United States, with the same size and weight as the Mark 17 nuclear bomb which used a very similar design concept but unenriched Lithium.
The Castle Yankee thermonuclear test was the first bomb to use enriched Lithium-6 isotope, up to perhaps 40% enrichment (the earlier Castle Bravo test had used the same enriched lithium combination but was not weaponised i.e. was not built as a deployable bomb). The device tested was called the Runt II design; it was reportedly very similar to the Runt design tested in Castle Romeo, other than the enrichment level.
Castle Yankee had a demonstrated yield of 13.5 megatons. The yield for the weaponized Mark 24 was predicted to be 10–15 megatons.
The EC24 bomb was a limited production run of the Castle Yankee test device, with 10 produced and stockpiled through 1954. The EC24 was 61 by 255 inches (1.55 by 6.48 m) and weighed 39,600 pounds (18,000 kg). The EC24 was a purely free-fall bomb design.
The production model Mark 24 nuclear bomb was 61.4 by 296 inches (1.56 by 7.52 m) long, with a weight between 41,000 and 42,000 pounds (18,600 and 19,100 kg). It was in service between 1954 and 1956, with a total of 105 units produced. The Mark 24 included a 64-foot-diameter (20 m) parachute to slow its descent.
The bomb used manual in-flight insertion (IFI) that required a crewmember to crank a handle that was inserted into a hole in the nose of the bomb. This process inserted the weapon's pit into the implosion assembly.[1]
^Crompton, J; Kohut, F A (August 1958). Aircraft Modification for the Mk 17 and the Mk 24 Atomic Bombs (Report). Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States). p. 11. from the original on 2022-11-19. Retrieved 2022-11-19.
Allbombs.html list of all US nuclear warheads at nuclearweaponarchive.org
Chuck Hansen, U. S. Nuclear Weapons: The Secret History (Arlington: AeroFax, 1988)
April 03, 2023
mark, nuclear, bomb, american, thermonuclear, bomb, design, based, third, american, thermonuclear, bomb, test, castle, yankee, mark, bomb, tied, largest, weight, size, nuclear, bomb, ever, deployed, united, states, with, same, size, weight, mark, nuclear, bomb. The Mark 24 nuclear bomb was an American thermonuclear bomb design based on the third American thermonuclear bomb test Castle Yankee The Mark 24 bomb was tied as the largest weight and size nuclear bomb ever deployed by the United States with the same size and weight as the Mark 17 nuclear bomb which used a very similar design concept but unenriched Lithium The Castle Yankee thermonuclear test was the first bomb to use enriched Lithium 6 isotope up to perhaps 40 enrichment the earlier Castle Bravo test had used the same enriched lithium combination but was not weaponised i e was not built as a deployable bomb The device tested was called the Runt II design it was reportedly very similar to the Runt design tested in Castle Romeo other than the enrichment level Castle Yankee had a demonstrated yield of 13 5 megatons The yield for the weaponized Mark 24 was predicted to be 10 15 megatons The EC24 bomb was a limited production run of the Castle Yankee test device with 10 produced and stockpiled through 1954 The EC24 was 61 by 255 inches 1 55 by 6 48 m and weighed 39 600 pounds 18 000 kg The EC24 was a purely free fall bomb design Contents 1 Design 2 Survivors 3 See also 4 ReferencesDesign EditThe production model Mark 24 nuclear bomb was 61 4 by 296 inches 1 56 by 7 52 m long with a weight between 41 000 and 42 000 pounds 18 600 and 19 100 kg It was in service between 1954 and 1956 with a total of 105 units produced The Mark 24 included a 64 foot diameter 20 m parachute to slow its descent The bomb used manual in flight insertion IFI that required a crewmember to crank a handle that was inserted into a hole in the nose of the bomb This process inserted the weapon s pit into the implosion assembly 1 Survivors EditA Mark 24 casing is on display in the Castle Air Museum in Atwater CA See also EditList of nuclear weapons Nuclear weapon design Teller Ulam design Mark 17 nuclear bomb Castle YankeeReferences Edit Crompton J Kohut F A August 1958 Aircraft Modification for the Mk 17 and the Mk 24 Atomic Bombs Report Sandia National Lab SNL NM Albuquerque NM United States p 11 Archived from the original on 2022 11 19 Retrieved 2022 11 19 Allbombs html list of all US nuclear warheads at nuclearweaponarchive org Chuck Hansen U S Nuclear Weapons The Secret History Arlington AeroFax 1988 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Mark 24 nuclear bomb amp oldid 1139472267, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
