Kinglet primary
Encyclopedia
Kinglet was a boosted fission primary used in two designs of American thermonuclear weapons, the W55
and the W58
; and was also adapted by the British as a super-hardened primary known as Harriet used in the Chevaline improvements to the British Polaris A-3TK missile.
Primary is the technical term for the boosted fission trigger of a thermonuclear weapon, and is used to compress, heat and ignite the fusion fuel in the thermonuclear secondary.
The Kinglet primary was used in the US W55
warhead of an NDB ("nuclear depth bomb") carried by the SUBROC anti-submarine missile launched horizontally from a submarine to attack at longer ranges and at shorter times than torpedoes can manage, and with a much higher kill probability. The two yields of the W55 are a common feature of NDBs. A high yield will be used in deep oceanic water. A low yield will be required for use in shallow or coastal waters, and in deep oceanic water to minimise risk to nearby shipping. The lower yield is likely to be obtained without the boosting, which in turn reduces the fusion element almost completely.
Kinglet was also used as a primary in the three W58
thermonuclear warheads of the US Polaris A-3
missile. The British had safety concerns about Kinglet and the W58 and initially rejected it for their Polaris A-3 missiles, and substituted a different all-British primary. The most recently declassified documents suggest that the British later adapted the Kinglet primary as a basis for Harriet used in Chevaline because it could be hardened against the effects of exo-atmospheric ABM warhead bursts before re-entry, whereas their original primary would be vulnerable, and unable to defeat the Soviet Galosh ABMs
defending Moscow.
Characteristics of these weapons are:
W55
The W55 was an American thermonuclear warhead used as the warhead for the SUBROC antisubmarine rocket system. The W55 was designed in the early-1960s, and produced from 1964 to 1968. The last units were retired from service in 1990. A total of 285 W55 weapons were produced.The W55 had a yield...
and the W58
W58
The W58 was an American thermonuclear warhead used on the Polaris A-3 submarine launched ballistic missile. Three W58 warheads were fitted as multiple warheads on each Polaris A-3 missile....
; and was also adapted by the British as a super-hardened primary known as Harriet used in the Chevaline improvements to the British Polaris A-3TK missile.
Primary is the technical term for the boosted fission trigger of a thermonuclear weapon, and is used to compress, heat and ignite the fusion fuel in the thermonuclear secondary.
The Kinglet primary was used in the US W55
W55
The W55 was an American thermonuclear warhead used as the warhead for the SUBROC antisubmarine rocket system. The W55 was designed in the early-1960s, and produced from 1964 to 1968. The last units were retired from service in 1990. A total of 285 W55 weapons were produced.The W55 had a yield...
warhead of an NDB ("nuclear depth bomb") carried by the SUBROC anti-submarine missile launched horizontally from a submarine to attack at longer ranges and at shorter times than torpedoes can manage, and with a much higher kill probability. The two yields of the W55 are a common feature of NDBs. A high yield will be used in deep oceanic water. A low yield will be required for use in shallow or coastal waters, and in deep oceanic water to minimise risk to nearby shipping. The lower yield is likely to be obtained without the boosting, which in turn reduces the fusion element almost completely.
Kinglet was also used as a primary in the three W58
W58
The W58 was an American thermonuclear warhead used on the Polaris A-3 submarine launched ballistic missile. Three W58 warheads were fitted as multiple warheads on each Polaris A-3 missile....
thermonuclear warheads of the US Polaris A-3
UGM-27 Polaris
The Polaris missile was a two-stage solid-fuel nuclear-armed submarine-launched ballistic missile built during the Cold War by Lockheed Corporation of California for the United States Navy....
missile. The British had safety concerns about Kinglet and the W58 and initially rejected it for their Polaris A-3 missiles, and substituted a different all-British primary. The most recently declassified documents suggest that the British later adapted the Kinglet primary as a basis for Harriet used in Chevaline because it could be hardened against the effects of exo-atmospheric ABM warhead bursts before re-entry, whereas their original primary would be vulnerable, and unable to defeat the Soviet Galosh ABMs
ABM-1 Galosh
ABM-1 Galosh was a Soviet, nuclear tipped surface-to-air anti-ballistic missile . The Galosh is based on the A-35 ABM System using Grushin model A-350 missile. The primary mission was to destroy U.S...
defending Moscow.
Characteristics of these weapons are:
| Kinglet primary based nuclear weapons | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model | Max Yield (kt) | Diameter (in) | Length (in) | Weight (lb) |
| W55 | 4.5 or 250 | 13.5 | 39.4 | 470 |
| W58 | 200 | 15.6 | 40 | 257 |
See also
- List of nuclear weapons
- Teller-Ulam designTeller-Ulam designThe Teller–Ulam design is the nuclear weapon design concept used in most of the world's nuclear weapons. It is colloquially referred to as "the secret of the hydrogen bomb" because it employs hydrogen fusion, though in most applications the bulk of its destructive energy comes from uranium fission,...
- Tsetse primaryTsetse primaryThe Tsetse was the common design nuclear fission bomb core for several Cold War designs for American nuclear and thermonuclear weapons, according to researcher Chuck Hansen....
- Python primaryPython primaryAccording to researcher Chuck Hansen, the W34 Python was a gas-boosted fission primary used in several designs of American thermonuclear weapons....
External links
- Beware the old story by Chuck Hansen, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, March/April 2001 pp. 52-55 (vol. 57, no. 02)
- Various Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Aviation declassified files lodged in the National Archives, London.
- http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Usa/Weapons?Allbombs.html
- The History of the UK. Strategic Deterrent: The Chevaline Programme. ISBN 1-85768-109-6 Published:2004 by the Royal Aeronautical Society, London.