hydrogen bomb
nounDefinition of hydrogen bomb
: a bomb whose violent explosive power is due to the sudden release of atomic energy resulting from the fusion of light nuclei (as of hydrogen atoms) at very high temperature and pressure to form helium nuclei
Examples of hydrogen bomb in a Sentence
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The earth moved more than 20 meters over a 500-mile zone and the resulting earthquake released as much energy as a 45-megaton hydrogen bomb (to put this in perspective, this is 30,000 times more powerful as the bomb that leveled Hiroshima). — Andrew Karam, Popular Mechanics, "Five Years Later, Cutting Through the Fukushima Myths," 11 Mar. 2016 Bikini was the site of the US's largest hydrogen bomb test known as Castle Bravo in 1954 -- the blast was 1,000 times as powerful as those dropped on Japan during World War II. — Helen Regan, CNN, "Parts of Marshall Islands are more radioactive than Chernobyl and Fukushima, study finds," 17 July 2019 In 1967, China successfully tested its first hydrogen bomb. — BostonGlobe.com, "This day in history," 17 June 2019 Its explosiveness likely had about a nonillion times (10 with 30 zeroes after it) the power of a hydrogen bomb, the researchers estimate—that is about five to 10 times more energetic than previously thought. — Rachel Crowell, Scientific American, "The Universe’s First Stars Exploded in Strange Ways," 31 May 2019 The country is believed to have around twenty fission bombs and to be progressing along the path to a much larger hydrogen bomb. — The New York Review of Books, "Jessica T. Mathews," 18 Apr. 2019 In September, North Korea Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho suggested that his country could detonate a hydrogen bomb over the Pacific Ocean. — Fortune, "Why Closing North Korea's Test Site Won't Hinder Kim Jong Un's Nuke Plans," 15 May 2018 The waterways of Oak Ridge run with mercury left over from Y-12’s production of hydrogen bomb fuel in the 1950s and ’60s. — Emily Strasser, Curbed, "A secret city opens up," 8 Aug. 2018 Meanwhile, the freeze on new material — including tritium, an element necessary for the North to make advanced atom bombs as well as the far more powerful hydrogen bombs — would mean that the program would slowly decay. — David E. Sanger, New York Times, "As Bolton Says North Korea Could Disarm in a Year, Reality Lags Promises," 1 July 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hydrogen bomb.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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