ABSTRACT
The main parameters of the atomic charge are the utilization efficiency of fissile material and the yield. These parameters were previously assessed in press as similar to those of the US bomb, probably because of the US design employed in the first Soviet bomb: yield - 20 kilotons TNT and efficiency - 5%. Some of the latest publications report different yields of the plutonium bomb exploded on August 29, 1949 - from 10 to 20 kilotons TNT. Ya.P. Dokuchaev [54] who conducted a radiochemical analysis of plutonium utilization in the first bomb suggests that the explosion yield was even lower. 1 1
Explosion of the first Soviet atomic bomb was a surprise to the Western leaders who expected this to occur m u c h later. So, this explosion put an end to the US atomic monopoly.
