The W88 nuclear warhead entered the stockpile in late 1988 and is deployed on the U.S. Navy’s Trident II D5 Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missile (SLBM) system, carried onboard Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines.

The W88 warhead belongs to the newest missile warhead family, sharing a design similar to the W87. It was designed for use on the Trident II (D5) SLBM. It combines a relatively high yield with increased accuracy to make it an effective hard target kill weapon.

The W88 is an American thermonuclear warhead, with an estimated yield of 475 kilotons of TNT (1,990 TJ), [2] and is small enough to fit on MIRVed missiles. The W88 was designed at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in the 1970s.

May 15, 2019 · The Trident II D5 SLBM is a three-stage, solid-fuel, inertially-guided missile with a range of 4,000 nautical miles capable of carrying multiple W76-Mk4/Mk4A or W88-Mk5 reentry bodies.

The W88 Alteration (Alt) 370 program replaces the arming, fuzing, and firing subsystem, adds a lightning arrestor connector, and refreshes the conventional high explosives within the weapon to enhance nuclear safety and support future life extension program options.

Mar 16, 2023 · Trident II D5 missile warheads. Trident II missiles are capable of carrying W76 or W88 multiple independently targeted re-entry vehicles (MIRVs). The MIRV is composed of an arming, fusing and firing (AF&F) assembly, a nuclear assembly, and electronics.

It is the United States' most sophisticated strategic thermonuclear weapon. In the US arsenal, the W-88 warhead is mated to the D-5 submarine-launched ballistic missile carried aboard the...

Jul 14, 2021 · The first new nuclear warhead that is slated to improve the Navy's Trident II D5 Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missile has finally rolled off the production line, according to a statement released...

Sep 15, 1988 · This report describes the W88 warhead that is being developed along with the Mk5 Reentry Body for use in the Trident II (D5) missile. The warhead design, its ancillary and support equipment, and the test and evaluation program are presented.

Jul 13, 2021 · The W88 warhead is one of two designs used aboard the Trident II D5 submarine launched ballistic missile. While the core design has been deployed since 1988, the Alt 370 modernization effort ...