October 30 in History
1961 – The Soviet Union detonates the Tsar Bomba, the most powerful explosive device ever detonated
The Tsar Bomba, a thermonuclear aerial bomb, identified as the most powerful nuclear weapon ever created and tested, was detonated on this day in 1961.
Also known by the alphanumerical designation ‘RI98J7’, and code named Vanya, Tsar Bomba was the largest nuclear device ever detonated and the most powerful man-made explosion in history. With a yield of 50 megatons of TNT, it was the culmination of a number of hydrogen bomb tests conducted throughout this time by both the Soviet Union and the United States.
The bomb project was ordered by Nikita Khrushchev in July 1961 as part of the Soviet resumption of nuclear testing after the Test Ban Moratorium, with the detonation timed to coincide with the 22nd Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
The bomb was dropped by parachute from a Tu-95V aircraft, and detonated autonomously 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) above the cape Sukhoy Nos of Severny Island, Novaya Zemlya, 15 km (9.3 mi) from Mityushikha Bay, north of the Matochkin Strait. The detonation was monitored by United States intelligence agencies, via a KC-135A aircraft that came close enough to have its anti-radiation paint scorched.
-Wikipedia
Photo Caption – The mushroom cloud of Tsar Bomba seen from a distance of 161 km (100 mi) – Wikipedia
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