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Click here to see new stories on the MOAB.
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http://science.howstuffworks.com/moab1.htm

www.strategypage.com/gallery/ default.asp?target=moab.htm

www.defenselink.mil/news/Mar2003/ b03112003_bt110-03.html -- defense link
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MOAB

It's called MOAB, short for "massive ordnance air burst" bomb. It is a modern, bigger version of the 15,000-pound "Daisy Cutter" used in Vietnam, the Persian Gulf War and Afghanistan.

Sources say MOAB ( still experimental ) is a 21,000-pound bomb that will be pushed out the back of a C-130 transport and guided by satellite. Because it is not dropped by parachute, as was the old Daisy Cutter, the aircraft can let it go from far higher altitudes, making it safer for U.S. pilots.

The MOAB's massive explosive punch, sources say, is similar to a small nuclear weapon.

It is intended to obliterate a command center hidden in tunnels and bunkers or a concentration of enemy tanks.

Whatever the target, it must be far from cities where civilians might be hurt. But one important aspect of using this type of weapon, sources say, will be psychological impact on enemy troops. It is intended to terrorize them, drastically reducing their desire to continue the fight.

Technical Specifications

Primary Function: Guided air-to-surface weapon
Guidance System: GPS/inertial gyroscopes
Launch Weight: 21,500 pounds, incl. 18,000 pounds of high explosives
Diameter: 40.5 inches
Contractor: Dynetics

The MOAB is an Air Force Research Laboratory technology project that began in fiscal year 2002 and is to be completed this year.

-signing off
hemanth