The U.S. Bunker Buster: War Tool or Crisis Catalyst?

在近期紧张的中东局势中，美国的军事动作备受瞩目，尤其是其用于打击地下目标的钻地弹，成为了舆论焦点。其中，GBU - 57 型钻地弹更是因可能被用于针对伊朗核设施的行动，而引发广泛关注。

Amid the recent tense Middle East situation, U.S. military moves have drawn significant attention, especially its bunker buster bombs designed to strike underground targets, which have become the focus of public opinion. Among them, the GBU - 57 bunker buster has sparked widespread concern due to its potential use against Iran's nuclear facilities.

GBU - 57：重型武器中的 “巨无霸”

GBU - 57: The "Giant" in Heavy Weapons

GBU - 57 型钻地弹堪称重型武器中的 “巨无霸”。它长度达 20 英尺，约合 6 米多，重量高达 30000 磅，换算过来约 13.6 吨，是世界上威力仅次于核武器的 “最大威力炸弹”，也正因能摧毁深埋地下的目标，被形象地称作 “地堡炸弹”。该型钻地弹配备先进的导航系统，能够精准锁定目标，并且可在穿透地面到达一定深度后再引爆，其可穿透的地下深度约 200 英尺，即约 61 米。目前，B - 2A 型隐形轰炸机是其主要搭载机型，一架 B - 2A 一次可携带两枚 GBU - 57 型钻地弹。

The GBU - 57 bunker buster is truly a "giant" among heavy weapons. It measures 20 feet in length, approximately 6 meters, and weighs a massive 30,000 pounds, about 13.6 tons. It is the "most powerful bomb" in the world after nuclear weapons and is vividly called the "bunker bomb" because it can destroy deeply buried targets. Equipped with an advanced navigation system, this bunker buster can accurately lock onto targets and detonate after penetrating the ground to a certain depth—capable of penetrating about 200 feet (approximately 61 meters) underground. Currently, the B - 2A stealth bomber is its main carrier, with each B - 2A able to carry two GBU - 57 bunker busters at a time.

研发背景与实战边缘

Development Background and the Brink of Actual Combat

研发 GBU - 57A/B 巨型钻地弹（MOP，GBU - 57 的一种型号）有着特殊背景。多项研究表明，普通轰炸地下核设施入口 “无法产生足够爆炸压力以摧毁整个设施”，只能短暂延缓核计划进展。于是，这种配备 6000 磅（约 3 吨）高爆炸药，拥有 “极其厚实坚硬” 外壳的炸弹应运而生，其能让炸药承受触地时的冲击力，并在穿透到预期深度后爆炸。该型炸弹于 2004 年首次测试，不过至今尚未在实战中使用过。但在去年，美军曾使用能搭载它的 B - 2 轰炸机打击也门胡塞武装的地下武器库。

The development of the GBU - 57A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP, a variant of GBU - 57) has a special background. Multiple studies have shown that ordinary bombing of underground nuclear facility entrances "cannot generate sufficient explosive pressure to destroy the entire facility," only temporarily delaying the nuclear program. Thus, this bomb with 6,000 pounds (about 3 tons) of high - explosive and an "extremely thick and hard" casing emerged. It allows the explosive to withstand the impact of hitting the ground and detonates after penetrating to the intended depth. The bomb was first tested in 2004 and has not been used in actual combat yet. However, last year, the U.S. military used B - 2 bombers capable of carrying it to strike the underground weapons depots of the Houthi armed forces in Yemen.

对伊朗福尔多核设施的打击挑战

Challenges of Striking Iran's Fordow Nuclear Facility

以伊朗的福尔多核设施为例，该设施位于地下 80 至 90 米处，且建在深 290 英尺（约 90 米）的山体内部，还由多层混凝土加固。美国战略与国际问题研究中心导弹防御项目负责人汤姆・卡拉科表示，一枚 GBU - 57 型钻地弹可能产生的破坏力度有限。因为金属材质在穿透过程中会在某一时刻熔化，限制了其穿透深度。所以，要想摧毁福尔多核设施这样坚固的目标，可能需要接连投放多枚，通过依次引爆，从某种程度上 “制造” 地震，来实现摧毁目的。

Take Iran's Fordow nuclear facility as an example. It is located 80 to 90 meters underground, built inside a mountain 290 feet (about 90 meters) deep, and reinforced with multiple layers of concrete. Tom Karako, head of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, says that a single GBU - 57 bunker buster may have limited destructive power. This is because the metal material will melt at a certain point during penetration, restricting its penetration depth. Therefore, to destroy a fortified target like the Fordow nuclear facility, it may be necessary to drop multiple bombs in succession and detonate them sequentially to, in a sense, "create" an earthquake for destruction.

潜在后果：从化学毒性到生态灾难

Potential Consequences: From Chemical Toxicity to Ecological Disaster

一旦福尔多核设施遭到打击，后果将不堪设想。清华大学安全科学学院助理教授、综合应急研究所副所长张小乐指出，可能会带来三方面严重后果。首先是化学毒性，福尔多可能存有大量具有极强腐蚀性的六氟化铀，一旦泄漏并与空气中的水分接触，会迅速转化为剧毒的氟化氢和铀的氧化物，对周边应急人员和居民构成急性中毒风险。其次是放射性危害，遭受打击后可能引发爆炸或大规模火灾，形成微小放射性颗粒，被人体吸入后会导致肺部阿尔法粒子辐射伤害，增加癌变和慢性健康风险，尤其对下风向数公里内的儿童、老年人或慢性病患者威胁更大。再者是环境和农业污染，放射性尘埃或氟化物降落到地面，会导致土壤和水体污染，进入灌溉系统后干扰农业生态系统，且这种复合污染具有长期残留性和区域扩散性，影响可能持续数年。

If the Fordow nuclear facility is struck, the consequences would be unthinkable. Zhang Xiaole, an assistant professor at Tsinghua University's School of Safety Science and Deputy Director of the Comprehensive Emergency Research Institute, points out that there may be three serious consequences. First is chemical toxicity. Fordow may store a large amount of highly corrosive uranium hexafluoride. Once leaked and in contact with moisture in the air, it will rapidly transform into highly toxic hydrogen fluoride and uranium oxides, posing an acute poisoning risk to surrounding emergency personnel and residents. Second is radioactive hazard. A strike could trigger explosions or large - scale fires, forming tiny radioactive particles. Inhalation of these particles can cause lung damage from alpha particle radiation, increasing the risk of cancer and chronic health problems, especially threatening children, the elderly, or people with chronic diseases within several kilometers downwind. Third is environmental and agricultural pollution. Radioactive dust or fluorides falling to the ground will cause soil and water pollution. Entering the irrigation system, they will disrupt the agricultural ecosystem. This composite pollution has long - term residual and regional diffusion characteristics, and its impact may last for years.

悬在中东上空的 “达摩克利斯之剑”

The "Sword of Damocles" Hovering over the Middle East

在当前中东紧张局势下，美国钻地弹的潜在使用无疑是一把高悬的 “达摩克利斯之剑”。其不仅可能改变地区军事平衡，引发更激烈的军事对抗，还可能对地区乃至全球的安全、环境和经济秩序造成难以估量的冲击。未来，这一战争利器究竟会走向何方，是推动局势进一步恶化，还是成为促使各方回归谈判桌的 “催化剂”，值得我们持续关注。

In the current tense situation in the Middle East, the potential use of U.S. bunker busters is undoubtedly a "Sword of Damocles" hanging high. It may not only alter the regional military balance and trigger more intense military confrontations but also cause incalculable impacts on regional and even global security, environmental, and economic orders. In the future, where this war 利器 (war tool) will go—whether it will push the situation further 恶化 (deteriorate) or become a "catalyst" to prompt all parties to return to the negotiating table—deserves our continued attention.