GBU-57: THE MASSIVE ORDNANCE PENETRATOR

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Context

• As tensions between Iran and the United States escalated over a former nuclear program, the US military this month posted pictures of a powerful bomb designed to penetrate deep into the earth and destroy underground facilities that could be used to enrich uranium.

About America’s Massive Ordnance Penetrator

• The US developed the Massive Ordnance Penetrator in the 2000s as concerns grew over Iran hardening its nuclear sites by building them underground.
• Stencilling on the bombs listed their weight as 12,300 kilograms.
• It also described the bomb as carrying a mix of AFX-757 — a standard explosive — and PBXN-114, a relatively new explosive compound.

Role in potentially targeting Iran’s nuclear program

• Tehran has been digging tunnels in the mountain near the Natanz nuclear site in central Iran.
• Experts say the size of the construction project indicates Iran likely would be able to use the underground facility to enrich uranium as well — not just to build centrifuges.
• S. has discussed using two such bombs in succession to ensure a site is destroyed.
• But even then, the new depth of the Natanz tunnels likely presents a serious challenge.

https://www.indiatvnews.com/news/world/us-iran-tension-us-military-designed-nuclear-bombs-to-hit-targets-like-iran-underground-nuclear-sites-photos-ebrahim-raisi-jcopa-iran-nuclear-sites-2023-05-22-871992