when was the first bomb invented and how much did it weight?

Question

not atomic bombs

*weigh, not weight
bombs that were used for military warfare

Answer 1

Capt M is close... Arty shells were not the first ordinance dropped from aircraft to use as bombs.

The very first ordinance to be considered air to ground bombardment would have been the improvised anti-troop bombs sometimes employed by the pilots of small recon aircraft (likewise in WWI, just much earlier). They wouldn't have weighed much at all, seeing as their construction was simply a handgrenade with the pin pulled and shoved into a mason jar. The jar would hold the explosive lever until the jar broke upon impact, then the grenade would explode (with the pilot's hope being the death of several troops in the trenches). Specific weight would be dependant on both the jar and the grenade employed, but couldn't have been much more than 2 pounds, and probably on average much less.

EDIT: For Rich, Rockets, artillery shells, and mortars do not fall under the bomb category, no matter how explosive they are.

Answer 2

You will have to be a little more precise with that question. Technically, anything that explodes is a bomb, and that goes back to the Chinese, almost 3 thousand years ago. In the National Anthem, there is a reference to the "bombs bursting in air". So your question needs to be a little more specific.

In terms of aerial bombs, the first aviators would carry a crate of hand grenades or light artillary rounds with them and toss them out of the cockpit. True aerial bombs were develped at the end of WWI, but they were really just a mortar round that was modified to a jury-rigged bomb rack on the bottom of the aircraft or the underside of the lower (if it was a bi-plane) wing.

Answer 3

It was Genghis Khan who first used the black powder he discovered in China for warfare, although in a very minor way. The Chinese had only used them for fireworks. Marco Polo imported it to Europe, and once cannons were in use exploding shot quickly followed. That gave us mortars and the first true bombs. Historical records, as far as I can find them, don't give us the kind of detail, exact dates and weights, for which you ask.

Answer 4

About 3 or 4 pounds... it was an artillary shell dropped from a biplane in WW1

Answer 5

Oh that's a hard one. I don't think we will ever know that answer. But I think bombs started making an appearance around when Chinese created black powder