What is the yield of a MOAB?

LordShaithis · Post by **LordShaithis** » 2003-04-12 09:30pm

Why do they insist on describing bombs by how much they weigh?? I want to know the explosive yield, damnit...

kojikun · Post by **kojikun** » 2003-04-12 10:11pm

21,000 pounds / 10.5 tonnes, 0.0105 kilotons

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2003-04-12 10:16pm

Its not the heaviest conventional weapon ever, but its the largest convetional yield.

Seggybop · Post by **Seggybop** » 2003-04-12 11:09pm

It weighs 21 tons, but that's not how much explosive it has, and the explosive it uses isn't TNT.

Raxmei · Post by **Raxmei** » 2003-04-12 11:28pm

I think they describe bombs by weight because that makes it easier to tell how many will fit in the bomber. The exact explosive yield isn't all that important to know.

kojikun · Post by **kojikun** » 2003-04-12 11:57pm

wait, shit, you mean the 21,000 pounds isnt the explosive yield? then what is???

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2003-04-12 11:58pm

kojikun wrote:wait, shit, you mean the 21,000 pounds isnt the explosive yield? then what is???

.01 Kilotons IIRC.

Morat · Post by **Morat** » 2003-04-13 12:21am

I don't know what the yield is, but here's a good place to look for that kind of information:

http://fas.org/man/

kojikun · Post by **kojikun** » 2003-04-13 12:58am

Alyeska, 21,000lb _IS_ 0.01kT

Wicked Pilot · Post by **Wicked Pilot** » 2003-04-13 01:10am

Off-Topic, but this is my new MOAB board pic:

kojikun · Post by **kojikun** » 2003-04-13 01:24am

BIGGER! make it BIGGER!!!

Warspite · Post by **Warspite** » 2003-04-13 10:03am

MOAB is packed with 18,000lb (8170kg) of Trinotal high explosive, the rest is the casing, wings, parachute and guidance system.

Usually these military high explosives are based on TNT, but have a whole lot of organic compounds to make them more stable and powerfull.

Alyeska · Post by **Alyeska** » 2003-04-13 10:07am

kojikun wrote:Alyeska, 21,000lb _IS_ 0.01kT

Oh, well in that case we know the MOAB is significantly more powerful. I could have sworn that I heard from the news that its firepower was actualy 1/4 KT.

Post by **Vympel** » 2003-04-13 10:43am

That was just bullshit media hype. It has the tiniest most minute fraction of firepower of a nuclear weapon. It's only a 9,500kg bomb, for heaven's sake. The Soviets have a 9,000kg bomb in their inventory (FAB-9000- say what you want about other Soviet designations but their bomb names are totally informative), you don't see anyone hyping it up as 'nuclear level' firepower.

SyntaxVorlon · Post by **SyntaxVorlon** » 2003-04-13 10:51am

I prefer John Stewart's take on it.
MOAB is an acronym for
O! BAM!