On May 25, 1953 the Grable test under Operation Upshot Knothole fired the W9 nuclear artillery shell over 6 miles downrange at Frenchman’s Flat detonating at 15 kilotons. The artillery shell weighed roughly 803 lbs. This was 1950’s technology that could still fit in the back of a pickup truck and level a city. I’m sure they’re a lot lighter and a lot more powerful today. So, yes. If we could do it in '53 we could definitely do it today, but with orders of magnitude more destructive force and likely lighter weight.
Edit: I did some more digging. For instance, the W88 warhead aboard MIRV’s on nuclear subs today have an explosive force of 475 kilotons with a mean average weight of 400 lbs for comparison. Though, most of that weight is probably shielding for reentry, so you could probably cut it back significantly if you’re just putting it in a car trunk.
On May 25, 1953 the Grable test under Operation Upshot Knothole fired the W9 nuclear artillery shell over 6 miles downrange at Frenchman’s Flat detonating at 15 kilotons. The artillery shell weighed roughly 803 lbs. This was 1950’s technology that could still fit in the back of a pickup truck and level a city. I’m sure they’re a lot lighter and a lot more powerful today. So, yes. If we could do it in '53 we could definitely do it today, but with orders of magnitude more destructive force and likely lighter weight.
Edit: I did some more digging. For instance, the W88 warhead aboard MIRV’s on nuclear subs today have an explosive force of 475 kilotons with a mean average weight of 400 lbs for comparison. Though, most of that weight is probably shielding for reentry, so you could probably cut it back significantly if you’re just putting it in a car trunk.