The Russian army is armed with one of the most powerful non-nuclear weapons in the world - a vacuum bomb. According to specialists from the Russian General Staff, the new bomb is comparable in its capabilities and effectiveness to nuclear weapons. At the same time, experts emphasize that this type of weapon does not pollute the environment at all. In addition, this bomb is quite cheap to manufacture and has high destructive properties. This domestic development does not violate any of the international treaties, the Ministry of Defense emphasizes.
Prior to that, the United States had the most powerful vacuum bomb in the world. Its tests were completed in 2003, then this superweapon managed to be dubbed "the mother of all bombs." Russian developers, without hesitation, did not look for other analogies and called their development “the daddy of all bombs”. At the same time, our aerial bomb is significantly superior in all respects to its American counterpart. The mass of the explosive in the Russian bomb is less, but at the same time it turned out to be 4 times more powerful. The temperature at the epicenter of its explosion is 2 times higher, and the total area of damage exceeds its American counterpart by almost 20 times.
Volumetric Explosion Effect
The action of a vacuum bomb is based on the effect of a volumetric explosion. We encounter a similar phenomenon almost every day: for example, when we start our car, a microexplosion of the fuel mixture is carried out in the cylinders of the internal combustion engine. In a more ominous form, this manifests itself in underground explosions in coal mines with an explosion of coal dust or methane, such incidents have catastrophic consequences. Even a cloud of dust, powdered sugar or small sawdust can explode. The reason for this is that the combustible substance in the form of a mixture has a very large area of contact with air (oxidizer), which provokes an explosion.
It was this effect that military engineers used. Technically, the bomb works quite simply. An explosive charge, most often non-contact, destroys the body of the bomb, after which fuel is sprayed in the air, which forms an aerosol cloud. As it forms, this cloud penetrates into shelters, trenches and other places inaccessible to traditional types of ammunition, the action of which is based on the defeat of a shock wave and shrapnel. Further, special warheads are fired from the body of the bomb, which ignite the cloud, and as the aerosol mixture burns out, a zone of relative vacuum - low pressure is created, into which air and all surrounding objects are then rapidly sucked. As a result, even without the creation of a supersonic shock wave that occurs when nuclear warheads are detonated, this type of weapon is capable of very effectively hitting enemy infantry.
BOV - volumetric explosion ammunition is 5-8 times stronger than conventional explosives by the force of its shock wave. In the USA, combustible mixtures were created on the basis of napalm. After using such bombs, the soil at the site of the detonation began to resemble lunar soil, but at the same time there was no radioactive or chemical contamination of the area. In America, the following have been tested and found suitable for use as explosives for CWA: ethylene oxide, methane, propyl nitrate, propylene oxide, MAPP (a mixture of acetylene, methyl, propadiene and propane).
Until recently, the same traditional fillers were used in Russia for this type of bomb. However, now the composition of the explosive of the new Russian vacuum bomb is kept secret, there is information that it was created using nanotechnology. That is why the Russian bomb is several times superior to the American one. If we turn this comparison into numbers, we get the following. The mass of the explosive in the US and Russian weapons of war is 8200 and 7100 kg. respectively, the TNT equivalent of 11 and 44 tons, the radius of guaranteed destruction is 140 and 300 meters, in addition, the temperature at the epicenter of the explosion of the Russian vacuum bomb is twice as high.
America was the first
The United States was the first to use BOV during the Vietnam War in the summer of 1969. Initially, these ammunition was used to clear the jungle, the effect of their use exceeded all expectations. The Iroquois helicopter could take on board up to 2-3 of these bombs, which were located right in the cockpit. The explosion of just one bomb created an area in the jungle suitable for a helicopter landing. However, the Americans soon discovered other properties of this type of weapon and began to use it to combat the leaky fortifications of the Viet Cong. The resulting cloud of atomized fuel, like gas, penetrated into dugouts, underground shelters, and into rooms. When this cloud was blown up, all structures into which the aerosol penetrated literally flew up into the air.
On August 6, 1982, during the Lebanese-Israeli war, Israel also tested similar weapons on people. An Israeli Air Force plane dropped a BOV on an 8-storey residential building, an explosion occurred in the immediate vicinity of the house at a level of 1-2 floors. As a result of the explosion, the building was completely destroyed, about 300 people died, mostly not in the building, but in the vicinity of the explosion site.
In August 1999, the Russian army used BOV during a counter-terrorist operation in Dagestan. A vacuum bomb was dropped on the Dagestani village of Tando, where a large number of Chechen fighters had accumulated. As a result, several hundred militants were killed, and the village was completely wiped out. In the following days, the militants, noticing in the sky even a single Russian Su-25 attack aircraft over any settlement, fled in panic. Thus, vacuum ammunition has not only a powerful destructive, but also a strong psychological effect. The explosion of such an ammunition is similar to a nuclear one, accompanied by a strong flash, everything around is on fire, and the ground is melting. All this plays a big role in the ongoing hostilities.
New BOV format
The high-power aviation vacuum bomb (AVBPM), which is now adopted by our army, has many times surpassed all similar ammunition available before. The bomb was tested on September 11, 2007. The AVBPM was dropped from a Tu-160 strategic bomber by parachute, reached the ground and successfully exploded. After that, a theoretical calculation of the zones of its destruction appeared in the open press, based on the known TNT equivalent of a bomb:
90 meters from the epicenter - complete destruction of even the most fortified structures.
170 m. From the epicenter - complete destruction of unreinforced structures and almost complete destruction of reinforced concrete structures.
300 meters from the epicenter - almost complete destruction of unreinforced structures (residential buildings). Reinforced structures are partially destroyed.
440 m. From the epicenter - partial destruction of unreinforced structures.
1120 m. From the epicenter - the shock wave breaks the glass.
2290 m. From the epicenter - a shock wave can knock a person down.
The West was very wary of the Russian tests and the subsequent adoption of this bomb. The British newspaper The Daily Telegraph even dubbed these events "a gesture of militant defiance directed to the West" and "a new confirmation of the fact that the Russian army is restoring its positions primarily in terms of technology. Another British newspaper, The Guardian, made suggestions that the bomb was a response to the US decision to deploy elements of a missile defense system in Europe.
Deterrent factor
A number of experts believe that the AVBPM has many shortcomings, but at the same time it may well act as another deterrent of possible aggression, along with conventional nuclear weapons. As the weaknesses of BOV, experts say that this type of weapon has only one damaging factor - a shock wave. This type of weapon does not have a fragmentation, cumulative effect on the target, in addition, for a volumetric explosion, the presence of oxygen and free volume is necessary, which means that the bomb will not work in an airless space, soil or water. In addition, current weather conditions are of great importance for this type of ammunition. So, in heavy rain or strong winds, the fuel-air cloud cannot form or it dissipates very quickly, and it is not very practical to fight only in good weather.
Despite this damaging effect of vacuum bombs is so strong and terrifying for the enemy that this type of ammunition is undoubtedly capable of acting as a good deterrent, especially in the fight against illegal gangs and terrorism.
