Mark 12 nuclear bomb
Encyclopedia
The Mark-12 was notable for being a large leap ahead in light weight and physical size compared to prior implosion-type nuclear weapons - The overall diameter was only 22 inches, compared to the immediately prior Mark-7 at 30 inch diameter. The comparative volume of the implosion assembly is only 40% as large as the Mark-7's.
There was a planned W-12 variant which would have been a nuclear warhead for the RIM-8 Talos
RIM-8 Talos
The Bendix RIM-8 Talos was a long-range naval surface-to-air missile, and was among the earliest surface-to-air missiles to equip United States Navy ships. The Talos used radar beam riding for guidance to the vicinity of its target, and semiactive radar homing for terminal guidance...
missile. The W-12 was cancelled prior to introduction into service.
Specifications
The complete Mark-12 bomb was 22 inches in diameter, 155 inches long, and weighed 1,100 to 1,200 pounds. It had a yield of 12 to 14 kilotons.Features
The Mark-12 has been speculated to have been the first deployed nuclear weapon to have used berylliumBeryllium
Beryllium is the chemical element with the symbol Be and atomic number 4. It is a divalent element which occurs naturally only in combination with other elements in minerals. Notable gemstones which contain beryllium include beryl and chrysoberyl...
as a reflector-tamper inside the implosion assembly (see nuclear weapon design
Nuclear weapon design
Nuclear weapon designs are physical, chemical, and engineering arrangements that cause the physics package of a nuclear weapon to detonate. There are three basic design types...
). It is believed to use a spherical implosion assembly, levitated pit, and 92-point detonation.
Appearance in fiction
Though the weapon went out of service more than 40 years ago, it resurfaced in a fictional role in Tom ClancyTom Clancy
Thomas Leo "Tom" Clancy, Jr. is an American author, best known for his technically detailed espionage, military science, and techno thriller storylines set during and in the aftermath of the Cold War, along with video games on which he did not work, but which bear his name for licensing and...
's 1991 book The Sum of All Fears
The Sum of All Fears
The Sum of All Fears is the best-selling thriller novel by Dan Fogelman and Tom Clancy, and part of the Jack Ryan series. It was the fourth book of the series to be turned into a film. An interesting historical note is that this book was released just days before the Moscow uprising in 1991, which...
, where the book plot included an Israeli copy of the Mark-12 being lost by accident in 1973 during the Yom Kippur War
Yom Kippur War
The Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War or October War , also known as the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, was fought from October 6 to 25, 1973, between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria...
in southern Syria, near the Golan Heights, and then recovered by a terrorist organization.