RDS-4 “Tatyana”

Aircraft bombSoviet UnionImplosion fission

Yield · TNT equivalent28 kt

Key specs

Country: Soviet Union
Design: Implosion fission
Type: Aircraft bomb
Weight: 1.2 t
In service: 1954

Overview

The first Soviet tactical nuclear bomb, about a third the size of RDS-3, light enough for the Il-28 jet bomber that dropped it in the August 1953 test (28 kt). Its charge was later used in early Soviet missile warheads.

Effect radii: estimates

Calculated for 28 kt

Fireball, maximum radius: ≈ 230 m
Initial radiation, 500 rem (5 Sv): ≈ 1.6 km
Blast 5 psi: most buildings collapse: ≈ 2.2 km
Thermal: third-degree burns: ≈ 2.6 km
Blast 1 psi: windows shatter: ≈ 6.7 km

Estimated ground ranges for an air burst at the optimum height over flat, open ground, computed from the yield with standard scaling laws. These are not measurements: real effects depend on the height of burst, terrain, buildings and weather.

Formulas from: Glasstone & Dolan, The Effects of Nuclear Weapons (1977), chapter II; Carey Sublette, Nuclear Weapons FAQ, section 5

Tests and use

Date	Event	Site	Yield
Aug 23, 1953	RDS-4 “Tatyana”	Semipalatinsk Test Site, Kazakh SSR	28 kt

Sources

Soviet Nuclear Test Summary, Nuclear Weapon Archive (Carey Sublette)
RDS-4, Wikipedia