Time bomb
Encyclopedia
A time bomb is a bomb
whose detonation is triggered by a timer
. The use (or attempts to use) time bombs has been for various purposes ranging from insurance fraud
to warfare to assassination; however, the most common use has been for politically-motivated terrorism
.
The explosive charge is the main component of any bomb, and makes up most of the size and weight of it. It is the damaging element of the bomb (along with any fragments or shrapnel
the deflagration might produce with its container or neighboring objects). The explosive charge is detonated by a detonator
.
A time bomb's timing mechanism may be professionally manufactured, either separately or as part of the device, or it may be improvised from an ordinary household timer such as a wind-up alarm clock
, wrist watch, digital kitchen timer, or notebook computer
.
s used in action/thriller TV series, cartoons, films and video games, where the hero
often escape the blast area or defuses the bomb at the last second. Many fictional time bombs are improvised, and usually involve a beep
ing sound with a large prominent countdown timer (on rare occasions, the timer will count up).
Such fictional appearances include:
Bomb
A bomb is any of a range of explosive weapons that only rely on the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy...
whose detonation is triggered by a timer
Timer
A timer is a specialized type of clock. A timer can be used to control the sequence of an event or process. Whereas a stopwatch counts upwards from zero for measuring elapsed time, a timer counts down from a specified time interval, like an hourglass.Timers can be mechanical, electromechanical,...
. The use (or attempts to use) time bombs has been for various purposes ranging from insurance fraud
Insurance fraud
Insurance fraud is any act committed with the intent to fraudulently obtain payment from an insurer.Insurance fraud has existed ever since the beginning of insurance as a commercial enterprise. Fraudulent claims account for a significant portion of all claims received by insurers, and cost billions...
to warfare to assassination; however, the most common use has been for politically-motivated terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
.
Construction
Fragmentation (weaponry)
Fragmentation is the process by which the casing of an artillery shell, bomb, grenade, etc. is shattered by the detonating high explosive filling. The correct technical terminology for these casing pieces is fragments , although shards or splinters can be used for non-preformed fragments...
the deflagration might produce with its container or neighboring objects). The explosive charge is detonated by a detonator
Detonator
A detonator is a device used to trigger an explosive device. Detonators can be chemically, mechanically, or electrically initiated, the latter two being the most common....
.
A time bomb's timing mechanism may be professionally manufactured, either separately or as part of the device, or it may be improvised from an ordinary household timer such as a wind-up alarm clock
Alarm clock
An alarm clock is a clock that is designed to make a loud sound at a specific time. The primary use of these clocks is to awaken people from their night's sleep or short naps; they are sometimes used for other reminders as well. To stop the sound, a button or handle on the clock is pressed; but...
, wrist watch, digital kitchen timer, or notebook computer
Laptop
A laptop, also called a notebook, is a personal computer for mobile use. A laptop integrates most of the typical components of a desktop computer, including a display, a keyboard, a pointing device and speakers into a single unit...
.
Types
Types of time bombs include:- Delay-action bombDelay-action bombA delay-action bomb is an aerial bomb designed to explode some time after impact, with the bomb's fuzes set to delay the explosion for times ranging from very brief to several weeks...
(bombs dropped by aircraft with a delay to increase damage/disruption) - Improvised explosive deviceImprovised explosive deviceAn improvised explosive device , also known as a roadside bomb, is a homemade bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action...
("home-made" bombs with a delay to allow the person placing the bomb to escape) - Limpet mineLimpet mineA limpet mine is a type of naval mine attached to a target by magnets; they are so named because of their superficial similarity to the limpet, a type of mollusk....
(attached to enemy ships by naval diversFrogmanA frogman is someone who is trained to scuba diving or swim underwater in a military capacity which can include combat. Such personnel are also known by the more formal names of combat diver or combatant diver or combat swimmer....
)
List of some notable incidents involving time bombs
| Year | Event | Location | Perpetrator(s) | Deaths | Injuries | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1871 | Attack on the Mosel (ship) | Bremerhaven Bremerhaven Bremerhaven is a city at the seaport of the free city-state of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms an enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the River Weser on its eastern bank, opposite the town of Nordenham... |
Alexander Keith, Jr. Alexander Keith, Jr. Alexander 'Sandy' Keith, Jr. was a notorious nineteenth century criminal from Halifax, Nova Scotia.-Life and career:Keith was born in 1827 in Caithness, Scotland, immigrating to Halifax when he was a small boy... |
80 | unkn. | bomb set for insurance fraud purposes; detonated prematurely |
| 1910 | Los Angeles Times bombing Los Angeles Times bombing The Los Angeles Times bombing was the purposeful dynamiting of the Los Angeles Times building in Los Angeles, California, on October 1, 1910 by a union member belonging to the International Association of Bridge and Structural Iron Workers. The explosion started a fire which killed 21 newspaper... |
Los Angeles | John J. McNamara and James B. McNamara | 21 | 100 | Union-related action |
| 1916 | Preparedness Day Bombing Preparedness Day bombing The Preparedness Day Bombing was a bombing in San Francisco, California on July 22, 1916, when the city held a parade in honor of Preparedness Day, in anticipation of the United States' imminent entry into World War I. During the parade a suitcase bomb was detonated, killing ten and wounding... |
San Francisco | Labor leaders | 10 | 40 | Isolationist political action |
| 1920 | Wall Street bombing Wall Street bombing The Wall Street bombing occurred at 12:01 p.m. on Thursday, September 16, 1920, in the Financial District of New York City. The blast killed 38 and seriously injured 143... |
New York City | Anarchists (suspected) | 38 | 400 | Followed other bombings in 1919 |
| 1939 | Bürgerbräukeller Bürgerbräukeller The Bürgerbräukeller was a large beer hall located in Munich, Germany. It was one of the large beer halls of the Bürgerliches Brauhaus company, and after Bürgerliches merged with Löwenbräu, the hall was transferred to that company. It was located on Rosenheimer Street in the neighborhood of... |
Munich | Georg Elser Georg Elser Johann Georg Elser was a German opponent of Nazism. He is most remembered for his unsuccessful attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler, but he also wanted to assassinate Hermann Göring and Joseph Goebbels in 1939.... |
7 | 63 | Assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945... |
| 1942 | St Nazaire Raid | St Nazaire, France (wartime) | Royal Navy, British Commandos | 590 | unkn. | To damage port facilities being used by enemy forces |
| 1972 | Aldershot Bombing 1972 Aldershot Bombing The Aldershot bombing was a car bomb attack by the Official Irish Republican Army on 22 February 1972 in Aldershot, England. The bomb targeted the headquarters of the British Army's 16th Parachute Brigade and was claimed as a revenge attack for Bloody Sunday. Seven civilian staff were killed and... |
Aldershot, UK | IRA | 7 | 18 | A 280lb time bomb in a car |
| 1974 | M62 Coach Bombing M62 coach bombing The M62 coach bombing happened on 4 February 1974 on the M62 motorway in northern England, when a Provisional Irish Republican Army bomb exploded in a coach carrying off-duty British Armed Forces personnel and their family members. Twelve people were killed by the bomb, which consisted of of... |
West Yorkshire | IRA | 12 | 38 | Continuing anti-British campaign |
| 1974 | Birmingham pub bombings Birmingham pub bombings The Birmingham pub bombings occurred on 21 November 1974 in Birmingham, England. The explosions killed 21 people and injured 182. The devices were placed in two central Birmingham pubs – the Mulberry Bush and the Tavern in the Town . Although warnings were sent, the pubs were not evacuated in time... |
Birmingham, UK | IRA (suspected) | 21 | 182 | Continuing anti-British campaign |
| 1974 | Guildford pub bombings | Guildford, UK | IRA | 5 | 65 | Targeted against Army personnel |
| 1977 | Lucona Lucona Lucona was an old ship sunk in the Indian Ocean in 1977 by a bomb planted by Austrian businessman Udo Proksch, as part of an insurance fraud. Proksch, the owner of the cargo, also then owner of famous Viennese confectioners Demel, claimed US$20 million from his insurance company, saying that the... sinking |
Indian Ocean | Udo Proksch Udo Proksch Udo Proksch was an Austrian businessman and industrialist. In 1991, he was convicted of the murder of six people as part of a major insurance fraud. Proksch died in prison.... |
6 | 0 | Attempted insurance fraud |
| 1984 | Brighton hotel bombing Brighton hotel bombing The Brighton hotel bombing happened on 12 October 1984 at the Grand Hotel in Brighton, England. The bomb was planted by Provisional Irish Republican Army member Patrick Magee, with the intention of assassinating Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and her cabinet who were staying at the hotel for the... |
Brighton, UK | IRA | 5 | 31 | Attempt to assassinate PM Margaret Thatcher |
| 1987 | Korean Air Flight 858 Korean Air Flight 858 Korean Air Flight 858 was a scheduled international passenger flight between Baghdad, Iraq, and Seoul, South Korea that exploded in mid-air on 29 November 1987 after two North Korean agents planted a bomb in the passenger cabin... |
Andaman Sea | North Korea | 115 (all) | 0 | State terrorism against South Korea |
| 1987 | Remembrance Day bombing Remembrance Day Bombing The Remembrance Day bombing took place on 8 November 1987 in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland... |
Enniskillen, Northern Ireland | IRA | 12 | 63 | Continuing anti-British campaign |
| 1988 | Pan Am flight 103 Pan Am Flight 103 Pan Am Flight 103 was Pan American World Airways' third daily scheduled transatlantic flight from London Heathrow Airport to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport... |
Above Lockerbie, Scotland | Libya | 270 | 0 | Reprisal against US |
| 1989 | Deal barracks bombing | Deal, Kent, UK | IRA | 11 | 21 | Targeted against military personnel |
| 1994 | Philippine Airlines Flight 434 Philippine Airlines Flight 434 Philippine Airlines Flight 434 was the route designator of a flight from Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Pasay City, the Philippines, to New Tokyo International Airport , Narita near Tokyo, Japan, with one stop at Mactan-Cebu International Airport, Cebu, the Philippines.On December 11, 1994... |
Between Cebu Cebu Cebu is a province in the Philippines, consisting of Cebu Island and 167 surrounding islands. It is located to the east of Negros, to the west of Leyte and Bohol islands... and Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
Ramzi Yousef Ramzi Yousef Ramzi Yousef was one of the main perpetrators of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and a co-conspirator in the Bojinka plot. In 1995, he was arrested at a guest house in Islamabad, by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence and United States Diplomatic Security Service, then extradited to the... |
1 | 10 | Foiled attempt. |
| 1999 | Russian apartment bombings Russian apartment bombings The Russian apartment bombings were a series of explosions that hit four apartment blocks in the Russian cities of Buynaksk, Moscow, and Volgodonsk in September 1999, killing 293 people and injuring 651. The explosions occurred in Buynaksk on 4 September, Moscow on 9 and 13 September, and... |
Buynaksk Moscow Volgodonsk |
unkn. | 293 | 651 | 4 bombs over 4 days; purpose unknown. |
| 2006 | Moscow market bombing 2006 Moscow market bombing The 2006 Moscow market bombing occurred on August 21, 2006, when a self-made bomb of the power of more than 1 kg of TNT exploded at Moscow's Cherkizovsky Market frequented by foreign merchants. In 2008, eight members of the racialist organization The Saviour were sentenced for their roles in... |
Moscow | Racialist organization | 13 | 46 | Racially-motivated attack |
Time bombs in fiction
Time bombs are common plot devicePlot device
A plot device is an object or character in a story whose sole purpose is to advance the plot of the story, or alternatively to overcome some difficulty in the plot....
s used in action/thriller TV series, cartoons, films and video games, where the hero
Hero
A hero , in Greek mythology and folklore, was originally a demigod, their cult being one of the most distinctive features of ancient Greek religion...
often escape the blast area or defuses the bomb at the last second. Many fictional time bombs are improvised, and usually involve a beep
Beep (sound)
A beep is a single tone onomatopoeia, generally made by a computer or a machine.-Use in computers:In some computer terminals, the ASCII character code 7, bell character, outputs an audible beep. The beep is also sometimes used to notify the user when the BIOS is not working or there is some other...
ing sound with a large prominent countdown timer (on rare occasions, the timer will count up).
Such fictional appearances include:
- KojakKojakKojak is an American television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, bald New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theo Kojak. It aired from October 24, 1973, to March 18, 1978, on CBS. It took the time slot of the popular Cannon series, which was moved one hour earlier...
, Knight Rider, MacGyverMacGyverMacGyver is an American action-adventure television series created by Lee David Zlotoff. Henry Winkler and John Rich were the executive producers. The show ran for seven seasons on ABC in the United States and various other networks abroad from 1985 to 1992. The series was filmed in Los Angeles...
, Get SmartGet SmartGet Smart is an American comedy television series that satirizes the secret agent genre. Created by Mel Brooks with Buck Henry, the show starred Don Adams , Barbara Feldon , and Edward Platt...
, Men in Black: The SeriesMen in Black: The SeriesMen in Black: The Series also known as Men in Black: The Animated Series is an American animated television series that aired during The WB's Kids' WB programming block for four seasons from 1997 through 2001.The show features characters from 1997's science fiction film Men in Black, which was...
, 2424 (TV series)24 is an American television series produced for the Fox Network and syndicated worldwide, starring Kiefer Sutherland as Counter Terrorist Unit agent Jack Bauer. Each 24-episode season covers 24 hours in the life of Bauer, using the real time method of narration...
, Sonic XSonic Xis an anime series based on the Sonic the Hedgehog video game series. It was produced in Japan by TMS Entertainment with the partnership of Sega and was created by Sonic Team and Sonic Project. In the United States, 4Kids currently owns and manages copyright and branding of the series.- Series 1 ...
, Hogan's HeroesHogan's HeroesHogan's Heroes is an American television sitcom that ran for 168 episodes from September 17, 1965, to March 28, 1971, on the CBS network. The show was set in a German prisoner of war camp during the Second World War. Bob Crane had the starring role as Colonel Robert E...
, VR TroopersVR TroopersVR Troopers was a syndicated live action show produced by Saban from 1994 to 1996...
, and Walker, Texas RangerWalker, Texas RangerWalker, Texas Ranger is an American television action crime drama series created by Leslie Greif and Paul Haggis, and starring Chuck Norris as a member of the Texas Ranger Division. The show aired on CBS in the spring of 1993, with the first season consisting of three pilot episodes. Eight full...
on television; - James Bond: GoldfingerGoldfinger (film)Goldfinger is the third spy film in the James Bond series and the third to star Sean Connery as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Released in 1964, it is based on the novel of the same name by Ian Fleming. The film also stars Honor Blackman as Bond girl Pussy Galore and Gert Fröbe as the title...
, Die Hard with a Vengeance, The HindenburgThe Hindenburg (film)The Hindenburg is a 1975 American film based on the disaster of the German airship Hindenburg. The film stars George C. Scott. It was produced and directed by Robert Wise, and was written by Nelson Gidding, Richard Levinson and William Link based on the book of the same name by Michael M. Mooney .A.A...
, The MaskThe Mask (film)The Mask is a 1994 American superhero comedy film based on a series of comic books published by Dark Horse Comics. This film was directed by Chuck Russell, and produced by Dark Horse Entertainment and New Line Cinema, and originally released to movie theatres on July 29, 1994 through New Line...
, The PeacemakerThe Peacemaker (1997 film)The Peacemaker is a 1997 American action/thriller film starring George Clooney and Nicole Kidman and directed by Mimi Leder. It is also notable as being the first film released by DreamWorks...
, Battle RoyaleBattle Royalethumb|260px|Cover of the 2009 expanded edition, ISBN 978-1-4215-2772-3 is a 1999 Japanese novel written by Koushun Takami. The story tells of schoolchildren who are forced to fight each other to the death....
, Battle Royale 2: Requiem and New Police StoryNew Police StoryNew Police Story is a 2004 Hong Kong action film starring Jackie Chan and directed by Benny Chan.The film is a reboot of the Police Story series. New Police Story relies much more on drama and heavy action than its predecessors.-Plot:...
in film; - Counter-StrikeCounter-StrikeCounter-Strike is a tactical first-person shooter video game developed by Valve Corporation which originated from a Half-Life modification by Minh "Gooseman" Le and Jess "Cliffe" Cliffe...
, Sonic Adventure 2Sonic Adventure 2Sonic Adventure 2 is a platform game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega for the Dreamcast video game console. It was released in North America on June 19, 2001 and in Japan on June 23, 2001 to mark the 10th anniversary of the release of the first Sonic the Hedgehog game. It is the sequel...
, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of LibertyMetal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Libertyis a stealth action video game directed by Hideo Kojima, developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2 in 2001....
, HaloHalo (series)Halo is a multi-million dollar science fiction video game franchise created by Bungie and now managed by 343 Industries and owned by Microsoft Studios. The series centers on an interstellar war between humanity and a theocratic alliance of aliens known as the Covenant...
, F-Zero GXF-Zero GXis a futuristic racing video game for the Nintendo GameCube console. Developed by Sega's Amusement Vision department and supervised and published by Nintendo, it was released in Japan, Europe and North America . F-Zero AX, the arcade counterpart of GX, uses hardware conceived from a business...
, Wolfenstein: Enemy TerritoryWolfenstein: Enemy TerritoryWolfenstein: Enemy Territory is a free and open source multiplayer first-person shooter video game set during World War II...
, Trauma Center: Under The KnifeTrauma Center: Under the KnifeTrauma Center: Under the Knife, known in Japan as , is a surgical simulation game developed and published by Atlus for the Nintendo DS and is the first entry in the Trauma Center series...
and Trauma Center Second Opinion in video games; and - Songs by The Old 97's, ChumbawambaChumbawambaChumbawamba is a British musical group who have, over a career spanning nearly three decades, played punk rock, pop-influenced music, world music, and folk music...
, GodsmackGodsmackGodsmack is an American heavy metal band from Lawrence, Massachusetts, formed in 1995. The band is composed of founder, frontman and songwriter Sully Erna, guitarist Tony Rombola, bassist Robbie Merrill, and drummer Shannon Larkin...
, The FormatThe FormatThe Format was an American indie rock band formed by Arizona natives Nate Ruess and Sam Means. The band announced a hiatus on February 4, 2008. Their style can be considered a mixture of indie, alternative, punk and folk music, with elements of 1960s and 1970s pop music...
, RancidRancid (band)Rancid is an American punk rock band formed in Berkeley, California in 1991. Founded by Tim Armstrong and Matt Freeman, both of whom previously played in the ska punk band Operation Ivy, Rancid is credited—along with Green Day and The Offspring—for reviving mainstream interest in punk rock in the...
, BuckcherryBuckcherryBuckcherry is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California formed in 1995. The band released two albums, Buckcherry and Time Bomb , before partially dissolving in the summer of 2002. In 2005, lead vocalist Josh Todd and lead guitarist Keith Nelson reformed Buckcherry and released a new album...
, The Dismemberment PlanThe Dismemberment PlanThe Dismemberment Plan is a Washington D.C. based indie rock band formed on January 1, 1993. Also known as D-Plan or The Plan, the name comes from a stray phrase uttered by insurance salesman Ned Ryerson in the popular comedy Groundhog Day. The band members included Eric Axelson , Jason Caddell ,...
, Faber DriveFaber DriveFaber Drive is a four-piece, Canadian pop punk band from Mission, British Columbia.-Biography:Discovered by Chad Kroeger of Nickelback, and signed to his 604 Records label after winning Fox Seeds, a local radio challenge, Faber Drive released their debut album, Seven Second Surgery, on May 15, 2007...
and BeckBeckBeck Hansen is an American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known by the stage name Beck...
titled "Time bomb" or "Timebomb". - The popular Super NES video game Chrono TriggerChrono Triggeris a role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1995. Chrono Triggers development team included three designers that Square dubbed the "Dream Team": Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of Square's Final Fantasy series; Yuji Horii, a...
takes its name from the timerTimerA timer is a specialized type of clock. A timer can be used to control the sequence of an event or process. Whereas a stopwatch counts upwards from zero for measuring elapsed time, a timer counts down from a specified time interval, like an hourglass.Timers can be mechanical, electromechanical,...
-detonatorDetonatorA detonator is a device used to trigger an explosive device. Detonators can be chemically, mechanically, or electrically initiated, the latter two being the most common....
assembly of a time bomb, although the game itself has nothing to do with time bombs but with time travelTime travelTime travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space. Time travel could hypothetically involve moving backward in time to a moment earlier than the starting point, or forward to the future of that point without the...
instead.
See also
- Bomb disposalBomb disposalBomb disposal is the process by which hazardous explosive devices are rendered safe. Bomb disposal is an all encompassing term to describe the separate, but interrelated functions in the following fields:*Military:...
- Fuse (explosives)Fuse (explosives)In an explosive, pyrotechnic device or military munition, a fuse is the part of the device that initiates function. In common usage, the word fuse is used indiscriminately...
- Ticking time bomb scenarioTicking time bomb scenarioThe ticking time bomb scenario is a thought experiment that has been used in the ethics debate over whether torture can ever be justified.Simply stated, the consequentialist argument is that nations, even those such as the United States that legally disallow torture, can justify its use if they...
(hypothetical justification of torture)