W66 (nuclear warhead)

The W66 thermonuclear warhead was used on the Sprint anti-ballistic missile system, designed to be a short-range interceptor to shoot down incoming ICBM warheads.^[1]

The W66 had a yield of 2 kilotonnes of TNT (8.4 TJ)^[2] and was an enhanced radiation ("neutron") weapon. The W66 was 18 inches (46 cm) in diameter and 35 inches (89 cm) long, with a weight of approximately 150 pounds (68 kg).^[3] The weapon was a two-stage design.^[4]

The W66 was based on the Arrow warhead design and by December 1966 had undergone six nuclear tests.^[5]

References

^ L C Harrison; W R Preeg; B B Rogers; JL Stokes; J R Lilley; M Henderson (July 1977). Output for the Sprint Warhead (Report). Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory. p. 1. Archived from the original on 2022-06-20.
^ Minutes of National Security Council Meeting (Report). Parity, Safeguard, and the SS–9 Controversy. Washington DC. 1969-05-05. p. 54. Archived from the original on 2022-10-08. Retrieved 2022-06-25.
^ Carey Sublette. "List of All U.S. Nuclear Weapons". Nuclear Weapon Archive. Retrieved 2022-06-24.
^ Betty L Perkins (2003-11-03). Tracing the Origins of the W76: 1966-Spring 1973 (PDF) (Report). Los Alamos National Labs. p. V-18. Retrieved 2021-07-23.
^ Robert McNamara (1966-12-02). Production and Deployment of the Nike-X (PDF) (Report). Secretary of Defense McNamara Memorandum for the President. p. 23. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-01-21. Retrieved 2022-06-24.

United States nuclear devices

Fission
(including
boosted)

Gravity bombs	Little Boy (Mark 1) Thin Man (Mark 2) Fat Man (Mark 3) Mark 4 Mark 5 Mark 6 Mark 7 Mark 8 Mark 10 Mark 11 Mark 12 Mark 13 Mark 18 Mark 20 Mk 105 B57
Warheads	W4 W5 W7 W8 W12 W13 W25 W30 W31 W34 W37 W40 W42 W44 W45 XW-51 W54 W72 W76-2 W81
Depth bombs	Mark 90 Mk 101 Mk 105 B57
Artillery	W9 W19 W23 W33 W48 W54 W74 W75 W79-1 W82-1
Atomic demolition munitions	XM1 ADM T2 ADM T4 Medium Atomic Demolition Munition (MADM) Special Atomic Demolition Munition (SADM) Tactical Atomic Demolition Munition (TADM)

Thermonuclear

Gravity bombs	Mark 14 Mark 15 TX16 Mark 17 Mark 21 TX22 Mark 24 Mark 26 Mark 27 B28 Mark 36 Mark 39 B41 B43 TX46 B53 B61 B77 B83 B90
Depth bombs	B90
Warheads	W15 W27 W28 TX29 XW-35 W38 W39 W41 XW-46 W47 W49 W50 W52 W53 W55 W56 W58 W59 W60 W61 W62 W63 W64 W67 W68 W69 W70 W71 W73 W76 W78 W80 W84 W85 W86 W87 W88 W89 W91 Reliable Replacement Warhead (RRW) W93