On October 30, 1961, the Soviet Union tested the "Tsar Bomba" at the head of the team developing the aerial thermonuclear bomb AN602 was academician Igor Kurchatov. The work lasted about seven years. Nikita Khrushchev announced the upcoming tests of a 50 megaton bomb in his report to the 22nd Congress of the CPSU. A special Tu-95V aircraft was prepared for the tests. The pilot Andrey Dornovtsev was appointed commander of the ships. The bomb was dropped from a height of 10,500 m using a parachute system towards a simulated target at the Sukhoi Nos nuclear test site in Nubia Zemlya. The bomb detonated barometrically at 11:33 am, 188 seconds after it was dropped at an altitude of 4,200 m above sea level. This is the most powerful explosive device in the history of mankind. The total energy of the explosion, according to various sources, was between 57 and 58.6 megatons worth of TNT. The mushroom cloud of the explosion rose to a height of 67 km. The test of the fearsome "Tsar Bomba" made a strong impression on the whole world. source.

On October 30, 1961, the Soviet Union tested the "Tsar Bomba" at the head of the team developing the aerial thermonuclear bomb AN602 was academician Igor Kurchatov. The work lasted about seven years. Nikita Khrushchev announced the upcoming tests of a 50 megaton bomb in his report to the 22nd Congress of the CPSU. A special Tu-95V aircraft was prepared for the tests. The pilot Andrey Dornovtsev was appointed commander of the ships. The bomb was dropped from a height of 10,500 m using a parachute system towards a simulated target at the Sukhoi Nos nuclear test site in Nubia Zemlya. The bomb detonated barometrically at 11:33 am, 188 seconds after it was dropped at an altitude of 4,200 m above sea level. This is the most powerful explosive device in the history of mankind. The total energy of the explosion, according to various sources, was between 57 and 58.6 megatons worth of TNT. The mushroom cloud of the explosion rose to a height of 67 km. The test of the fearsome "Tsar Bomba" made a strong impression on the whole world. source.