The geopolitical climate is unpredictable right now, with the trade war and delayed peace negotiations for the Ukraine- Russia war, among other things. Amid a time like this, fears grow about a potential World War 3 as the United States kicks off the production of its latest nuclear bomb earlier than initially planned.
Dubbed B61-13, the nuclear bomb project was originally scheduled to begin a full seven months later. Amid tensions with powerful nations like Russia and China, people are worried about what this early project could mean.
Previously, Donald Trump boasted about the United States’ nuclear capabilities, and now it is being reported that the B16-13 has a yield of 360 kilotons, which is at least 24 times the power of the atomic bomb unleashed on Hiroshima, Japan, during the World War II.
The engineers at Sandia National Laboratories have long been talking about “an aggressive set of plans in motion” to fast-track this atomic bomb project. “Responding to a critical challenge and urgent need, the B61-13 program used innovative program planning that resulted in projected delivery seven months earlier than expected, a more than 25% decrease in overall time to first production unit,” they declared, as per the Irish Star.
“The B61-13 team reprioritized qualification activities, planned tests with U.S. Air Force stakeholders, and jointly completed requirements with Los Alamos National Laboratory and NNSA (National Nuclear Security Administration).”
The NNSA has assigned $92 million over a four-year period for this nuclear bomb development. As per the Mirror, the initial production was slated to begin in the fiscal year of 2026.
Delivering on national security, ahead of schedule ⏱️ Sandia’s B61-13 program is responding to an urgent need by projecting a delivery date seven months earlier than expected ➡️ https://t.co/oRJsC36WWo pic.twitter.com/owIJt2NDj8
— Sandia National Labs (@SandiaLabs) April 2, 2025
“The United States has a responsibility to continue to assess and field the capabilities we need to credibly deter and, if necessary, respond to strategic attacks and assure our allies,” said John Plumb, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy, where the bomb was first discussed 2 years back.
The B61-13 bomb is expected to be deployed by strategic aircraft like the retiring B-2 Spirit and the upcoming B-21 Raider stealth bomber.
This new update comes after a haunting map laid out the areas in the United States that will be most affected if a potential nuclear war was to gain momentum. According to the map, around 75% of the entire population could be wiped out. In particular, each city on the midwest, east, and west coast would be targeted in a potential World War 3 scenario. Major metropolitans like Los Angeles, New York, Houston, Washington DC, and Philadelphia will likely be hit, resulting in at least 250 million deaths.
Fears now grow about this potential nuclear war, largely due to the tension between Russia and Europe, as well as the turmoil in the Middle East. Notably, back in January, a large-scale military exercise was also conducted in New York to prepare the U.S. troops for a scenario like this.
