The Difference Between an Atom Bomb & a Hydrogen Bomb

Atomic weapons were used twice, in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but hundreds of tests have been conducted.

The atom bomb (A-bomb) and hydrogen bomb (H-bomb) are the two types of nuclear weapons existing today in the world's nuclear arsenal. While both are capable of a catastrophic amount of destruction, the A-bomb and H-bombs are based on two different physics principles: fission for the A-bomb and fusion for the H-bomb. The American bombs dropped on Japan, known as Fat Man and Little Boy, were atomic bombs, while the most powerful nuclear device detonated, the Soviet Tsar, was an H-bomb.

Fission

The A-bomb uses the principle of fission to create energy. Fission happens when a heavy atom, such as plutonium 239 or uranium 235 (representing the number of protons in their core) break into lighter elements and release energy in the process. The A-bomb used two methods to become super-critical, which is releasing their energy in a catastrophic manner instead of a controlled manner, such as in a atomic power plant. The shotgun design uses conventional explosives to thrust a plutonium or uranium bullet into a solid mass of the same element at the end of a barrel, initiating the explosion. The implosion method uses conventional explosives around the core to compress it and initiate the explosion.

Fusion

The H-bomb or hydrogen bomb uses fusion as part of its operation. Fusion happens when two atoms combine to form another heavier atom. In that case, two hydrogen isotope atoms with one proton in their core combine to form a helium atom with two protons. Fusion produces a neutron and radiation. The H-bomb is a stage design. The first stage is a fission bomb designed to compress hydrogen isotopes to produce fusion in the second stage. Fusion ignites another fission bomb in the third stage using its compressive power and radiation. The radiation allows the fission bomb of the third stage to produce more energy than a conventional fission bomb.

Fuels

Atom bombs use three types of fuels which are isotopes of uranium and plutonium, and H-bombs use hydrogen isotopes combined with either plutonium or uranium. An isotope is an atom which has the same number of protons in its core, but has a different number of neutrons. The number of isotopes are important because while Uranium 235 is highly fissile, uranium 238 is not. Naturally occurring hydrogen requires more energy to initiate fusion, so nuclear weapons use hydrogen isotopes deuterium and tritium.

Delivery Methods

Nuclear weapons delivery methods depend on whether they are tactical or strategic weapons. Tactical nuclear weapons are supposed to be used against tanks, infantry or bomber formations, while strategic weapons are supposed to be used against cities, production centers and military centers. Tactical weapons have virtually disappeared from the arsenal of all major nuclear powers. Tactical weapons were all A-bombs because they are easier to transport than the physically bulky H-bombs. Over the years, strategic nuclear test weapons have been delivered using bombs dropped from planes or using ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile) fired from land or sea. Tactical weapons were designed to be fired shoulder-mounted or from tanks, canons and torpedoes.

References

• Fox News: Hydrogen Bomb
• Fox News: Atom Bomb