hydrogen bomb
noun
: 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
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Sakharov made his name working as a physicist on the development of the U.S.S.R.’s hydrogen bomb, at the height of the Cold War, but shot to global prominence after Leonid Brezhnev’s regime punished him for speaking publicly about the dangers of those weapons, and also about Soviet repression.
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Julia Angwin, New Yorker, 12 Apr. 2025
The missile sites, intended to potentially intercept a Soviet plane carrying a hydrogen bomb, operated from the early 1950s until their decommissioning in 1971.
—Marin Independent Journal, Mercury News, 28 Mar. 2025
However, while fusion is relatively easy to achieve in the heart of the sun or in a hydrogen bomb, creating a practical reactor that produces more energy than is put into it is another matter entirely.
—David Szondy, New Atlas, 18 Feb. 2025
In 1968, an American B-52G Stratofortress bomber, carrying four hydrogen bombs, crashed onto the sea ice near Thule after a crew member started a fire by stuffing seat cushions in front of a heating vent.
—Louise Bokkenheuser, The New Yorker, 11 Mar. 2025
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Julia Angwin, New Yorker, 12 Apr. 2025
The missile sites, intended to potentially intercept a Soviet plane carrying a hydrogen bomb, operated from the early 1950s until their decommissioning in 1971.
—Marin Independent Journal, Mercury News, 28 Mar. 2025
However, while fusion is relatively easy to achieve in the heart of the sun or in a hydrogen bomb, creating a practical reactor that produces more energy than is put into it is another matter entirely.
—David Szondy, New Atlas, 18 Feb. 2025
In 1968, an American B-52G Stratofortress bomber, carrying four hydrogen bombs, crashed onto the sea ice near Thule after a crew member started a fire by stuffing seat cushions in front of a heating vent.
—Louise Bokkenheuser, The New Yorker, 11 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hydrogen bomb
Cite this Entry
“Hydrogen bomb.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hydrogen%20bomb. Accessed 29 Apr. 2025.
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