Tsar Bomba

Meer over het boek

On 30 October 1961, the Soviet Union conducted a live test of the most powerful nuclear weapon ever created, codenamed 'Ivan' or 'Tsar Bomba'. Detonated at Sukhoy Nos cape in the Novaya Zemla archipelago, this RDS-202 hydrogen bomb unleashed approximately 58 megatons of TNT, producing an 8-kilometer fireball and a mushroom cloud that reached 95 kilometers in altitude. The shockwave devastated a village 55 kilometers away and caused extensive environmental damage over a wide radius, with a heat wave felt as far as 270 kilometers. This test was just one of 45 nuclear detonations conducted by the USSR in October 1961 alone. Between 1949 and 1962, the Soviets detonated 214 nuclear bombs in the open air, many released from aircraft operated by specialized test units. These units, staffed by individuals known as the 'deaf-and-dumb', operated under strict secrecy, living in isolation while managing aircraft like the Tupolev Tu-4, Tu-16, and Tu-95. Frequently pushing the limits of their modified planes while testing weapons of immense destructive power, many narrowly escaped disaster. Richly illustrated with authentic photographs and custom color profiles, this narrative delves into the experiences of the aircrews and their aircraft, hidden behind the Iron Curtain and a shroud of secrecy for over fifty years.