TheStarling was a small Americannuclear bomb developed in the 1950s that was used as theprimary in several USthermonuclear weapons.
The Starling was developed byLawrence Livermore National Laboratory. According to researcherChuck Hansen, it was 11.53 inches (293 mm) in diameter, 14.25 inches (362 mm) in length, and had a weight of 86.4 pounds (39.2 kg).[1] As tested inNougat Cimarron, the primary had a yield of 5 to 8 kilotonnes of TNT (21 to 33 TJ)[2] but is also described as being 10 to 20 kilotonnes of TNT (42 to 84 TJ).[1] It was a two-point primary, likeTsetse,Kinglet,Robin, andGnat.[1]
Starling is reportedly the primary for theW55 (which also usedKinglet) andW56 warheads.[3] Starling and Kinglet are reportedly the immediate successors to Robin.[4]
