Iranian scientists have run computer simulations for a nuclear weapon that would produce more than triple the explosive force of the World War II bomb that destroyed Hiroshima, according to a diagram obtained by the Associated Press.
The diagram was leaked by officials from a country critical of Iran's
atomic program to bolster their arguments that Iran's nuclear program
must be halted before it produces a weapon. The officials provided the
diagram only on condition that they and their country not be named.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) -- the Vienna-based nuclear watchdog for the United Nations -- reported last year that it had obtained diagrams indicating that Iran was calculating the "nuclear explosive yield" of potential weapons.
A senior diplomat considered neutral on the issue confirmed that the graph obtained by the AP was one of those cited by the IAEA. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the issue.
The IAEA report mentioning the diagrams last year did not give details of what they showed.
The diagram seen by the AP shows a bell curve -- with variables of time in microseconds, and power and energy both in kilotons -- the traditional measurement of the energy output, hence the destructive power of nuclear weapons.
The curve peaks at just above 50 kilotons at around 2 microseconds, reflecting the full force of the weapon being modeled.
The bomb that the United States dropped on Hiroshima in Japan during World War II had a force of about 15 kilotons. Modern nuclear weapons have yields hundreds of times higher.
David Albright, whose Institute for Science and International Security is used by the U.S. government as a go-to source on Iran's nuclear program, said the diagram looks genuine but seems to be designed more "to understand the process" than as part of a blueprint for an actual weapon in the making.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) -- the Vienna-based nuclear watchdog for the United Nations -- reported last year that it had obtained diagrams indicating that Iran was calculating the "nuclear explosive yield" of potential weapons.
A senior diplomat considered neutral on the issue confirmed that the graph obtained by the AP was one of those cited by the IAEA. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the issue.
The IAEA report mentioning the diagrams last year did not give details of what they showed.
The diagram seen by the AP shows a bell curve -- with variables of time in microseconds, and power and energy both in kilotons -- the traditional measurement of the energy output, hence the destructive power of nuclear weapons.
The curve peaks at just above 50 kilotons at around 2 microseconds, reflecting the full force of the weapon being modeled.
The bomb that the United States dropped on Hiroshima in Japan during World War II had a force of about 15 kilotons. Modern nuclear weapons have yields hundreds of times higher.
David Albright, whose Institute for Science and International Security is used by the U.S. government as a go-to source on Iran's nuclear program, said the diagram looks genuine but seems to be designed more "to understand the process" than as part of a blueprint for an actual weapon in the making.
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