FACT CHECK #YDEMYTWS

WHAT WE FOUND

Modern thermonuclear weapons, most notably the U.S. W88 warhead and designs recently showcased by North Korea, utilize a specialized "peanut-shaped" radiation case to house the weapon's physics package (1.2.1, 1.4.1). In this configuration, an initial conventional high-explosive detonation triggers the "primary" fission bomb, which is located at one end of the peanut-shaped interior (1.3.6). The unique geometry of the radiation case is designed to efficiently reflect and channel the resulting X-rays to compress the "secondary" fusion stage, which is situated in the other lobe of the peanut (1.4.3, 1.4.5). While the primary fission bomb itself is typically spherical or prolate, the term "peanut-shaped space" accurately refers to the integrated housing that contains the primary and enables the staged explosion (1.2.7, 1.4.2).

SOURCES

NO SOURCES ON RECORD

THE READING