The US has hit Iran’s three nuclear locations, Fordow, Natanz and Esfahan, amid a constant conflict between Israel and Iran.
US President Donald Trump has confirmed that B-2 stealth bombers were involved in the attack.
An American civil servant later confirmed that Bunker-buster bombs were dropped at the Fordow and Natanz locations, reported the New York Times.
Shortly after the strike, Mr. Trump threatened further attacks on Iran if the nation does not surrender and adds: “Remember, there are many goals”.
So, what is a B-2 Stealth Bomber and the Bunker-Buster weapon that used to attack the Iranian facilities?
B-2 Stealth Bombers are reportedly involved in the US strikes in the three nuclear locations of Iran. ((Reuters: US Air National Guard))
What is a B-2 Stealth Bomber?
The American B-2-bombers, praised as the most expensive military planes ever built, each cost around $ US2.1 billion ($ 3.24 billion).
Made by Northrop Grumman Corporation, B-2-bombers are the only plane capable of wearing a bomb that is large enough to influence the primary and most protected Fordown-Nuclear facility of Iran, which was built deep in a mountain.
The range of the B-2 is approximately 6000 nautical miles (9,600 kilometers), according to the US Air Force. By refueling the air, the bomber can, with low perceptibility, reach almost any target worldwide.
The plane can wear a diverse range of conventional and nuclear weapons.
Two American Air Force B-2 Spirit Stealth Bombers fly with a few raven F-35A Lightning II hunters.
((Lever: US Air Force Tech. Sgt. Dylan Nuckolls))
The bombers can host a crew of two – a pilot in the left chair and a mission commander on the right – the Air Force said on its website.
According to Reuters, only 21 B-2s were made after the planned acquisition program of the Pentagon was cut off.
They are considered one of the most advanced strategic weapon platforms in America, which are able to introduce advanced air defenses and deliver precision attacks against goals such as Fordow.
The stealth technology of the B-2 contains radarabsorboring materials and corner design characteristics that minimize detection through enemy anti-aircraft systems, according to Reuters.
The Radar-Dwars drainage of the bomber is reportedly comparable to that of a small bird, making it almost invisible to conventional radar.
The composite materials, special coatings and wing design of the B-2 all contribute to its “stealthiness”, the US Air Force added.
B-2 bombers work from an American Air Force Base in Missouri.
What is a bunk buster bomb?
The B-2 Internal Weapons Bay is reportedly specifically designed to preserve Stealth properties and at the same time experience large ammunition charges, including two GBU-57 solid ordnance penetrators (MOP).
American staff inspects a GBU-57, or the massive ordnance penetrator bomb, on an American air force base in 2023. ((AP: US Air Force/File))
The mop is a 30,000 pound precision-based bomb, sometimes referred to as a “bunker-buster bomb”.
As ABC News has reported, the joke is the only conventional weapon that can be thought to be able to violate and destroy the Nuclear site of Fordow.
It weighs more than 13 tons, is six meters high and is specifically designed to “beat hard and deeply buried goals” such as bunkers and tunnels, according to a fact sheet from an US Department of Defense.
“Although each B-2 can wear two GBU-57/BS, such an attack would require redundancy because the weapons should function and be delivered perfectly to go to the facility and to explode at the right depth to cause critical damage,” said Justin Bronk, an Air force specialist at the Royal United Services, ABC.
It is believed that the joke can reach the depths up to 60 meters before it explodes.
ABC/Reuters
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