thermonuclear Hear it!

thermonuclear Definition

thermo·nu·clear (t̸hʉr′mō no̵̅o̅′klē ər, -nyo̵̅o̅′-)

adjective

  1. designating or of a reaction in which isotopes of a light element, esp. hydrogen, fuse at temperatures of millions of degrees into heavier nuclei
  2. designating, of, or employing the heat energy released in nuclear fusion thermonuclear reactor

Etymology: thermo- + nuclear

thermonuclear Usage Examples

Modifies a noun

  • warhead: In 1958, Britain resumed its Special Nuclear Relationship with the United States producing an Anglicized version of the US W28 thermonuclear warhead.
  • fusion: They give off some faint light, but they are not quite big enough to start shining through thermonuclear fusion.
  • explosion: In fact they result from a thermonuclear explosion on the surface of a white dwarf star in a close binary system.
  • weapon: The stolen US nuclear secrets give the PRC design information on thermonuclear weapons on a par with our own.
  • bomb: Even this power was soon to be dwarfed by the theoretically limitless energy of the thermonuclear bomb.
  • reaction: The sun radiates energy produced by thermonuclear reactions deep in its interior.