Here’s the Bomb the US Hopes It Never Has to Use Against Iran
Policy + Politics

Here’s the Bomb the US Hopes It Never Has to Use Against Iran

The good news: Iran seems to be living up to its end of the treaty with six other nations that requires a halt to Iran’s uranium enrichment and processing activities. In short—they can’t make nuclear weapons.

Related: 9 ISIS Weapons That Will Shock You

The bad news: Last December, Iran launched the second ballistic missile test in violation of its nuclear arms agreement. The missiles are housed in an underground storage bunker 1,640 feet underground.

One of Iran’s former nuclear enrichment sites, known as Fordow, is built into a mountain and is designed to withstand an aerial bomb attack. A story in The Washington Post in 2012 called the site “impregnable.” The Post said Fordow was engineered to repel massive attacks and was modeled after North Korean bunkers.


One of Iran’s underground missile storage bunkers - Twitter

Separately, the Center for Strategic and International Studies said Fordow included “blast-proof doors, extensive divider walls, hardened ceilings, 20-centimeter-thick concrete walls, and double concrete ceilings with earth filled between layers.”

Whether it’s Iran, North Korea or even Russia, the U.S. now has its “just-in-case” weapon—an earth penetrating B61-12 nuclear bomb that detonates after hitting its target underground. Of course, this is just one of many different types of “bunker busting” bombs in America’s arsenal. 

Take a look at America’s bunker busting B-61 bomb:

TOP READS FROM THE FISCAL TIMES