Pentagon to test 700-ton explosive; will send mushroom cloud over Las Vegas...

Discussion in 'Politics' started by JayS, Mar 30, 2006.

  1. JayS

    JayS

    http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/03/30/060330162648.wxde5ocl.html

    US to test 700-tonne explosive
    Mar 30 11:26 AM US/Eastern


    The US military plans to detonate a 700 tonne explosive charge in a test called "Divine Strake" that will send a mushroom cloud over Las Vegas, a senior defense official said.

    "I don't want to sound glib here but it is the first time in Nevada that you'll see a mushroom cloud over Las Vegas since we stopped testing nuclear weapons," said James Tegnelia, head of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency.


    Tegnelia said the test was part of a US effort to develop weapons capable of destroying deeply buried bunkers housing nuclear, chemical or biological weapons.

    "We have several very large penetrators we're developing," he told defense reporters.

    "We also have -- are you ready for this - a 700-tonne explosively formed charge that we're going to be putting in a tunnel in Nevada," he said.

    "And that represents to us the largest single explosive that we could imagine doing conventionally to solve that problem," he said.

    The aim is to measure the effect of the blast on hard granite structures, he said.

    "If you want to model these weapons, you want to know from a modeling point of view what is the ideal best condition you could ever set up in a conventional weapon -- what's the best you can do.

    "And this gets at the best point you could get on a curve. So it allows us to predict how effective these kinds of weapons ... would be," he said.

    He said the Russians have been notified of the test, which is scheduled for the first week of June at the Nevada test range.

    "We're also making sure that Las Vegas understands," Tegnelia said
     
  2. Pabst

    Pabst

    Vegas residents will realize the blast pales compared to a Don Bright fart.....:)
     
  3. holy crap, that's the last thing i expected to hear today. big bomb. scary

    lol pabst.
     
  4. Why not test it on the al Sadr compound in Iraq?
     
  5. ElCubano

    ElCubano

    hahahahahaaha.....oh boy...i needed that one
     
  6. Vegas might just think it's the sound of the housing market finally giving way.
     
  7. Chagi

    Chagi

    "We have several very large penetrators we're developing"

    Gee, I wonder what these would be for?
     
  8. Hahahahahah
     
  9. Sounds like target practice for Iran perhaps;
    not that USA /Israel would have to wait until June , as originaly planned.:cool:
     
    #10     Apr 3, 2006