What is the "mother of all bombs" the US could use in Iran?

US media reported that the military is reviewing plans to use the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb (MOAB).

The United States has drawn up plans to strike Iran with the largest non-nuclear bomb in its military arsenal at Iran's energy infrastructure and nuclear sites if President Donald Trump orders renewed combat operations, US officials have said, according to CNN.

Experts say the deployment of the GBU-43/B Ordnance Bomb (MOAB), dubbed the "mother of all bombs," could significantly escalate ongoing conflicts once the hostilities have died down.

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The end of the list of concerns has also been raised, including within the Trump administration itself, about what such an action would achieve. Officials familiar with the military planning discussions told US news networks CNN and Al Jazeera that the MOAB deployment is unlikely to help the US achieve its stated strategic goals, including the destruction of Iran's nuclear capabilities.

Elijah Magnier, a Brussels-based military expert, told Al Jazeera that the use of MOABs would not even guarantee the destruction of Iran's underground nuclear facilities, and that such an attack would likely be little more than "political theater".

The GBU-43/B (MOAB) explosive aerial bomb is a massive munition containing about 8,500 kg (18,000 lb or 8.5 tons) of high explosive. It weighs 9,800 kilograms (21,605 pounds, or nearly 10 tons)—about as much as four saloon cars—and is about the length of a small yacht, just over 9 meters (about 30 feet) tall.

The MOAB is typically deployed from a Lockheed C-130 Hercules cargo plane because it cannot fit into a stealth bomber.

This bomb, which was first developed between 2002 and 2003, has gone through 12 explosive tests.

Its name is a reference to former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's remarks during the 1991 Persian Gulf War, when he called it "the mother of all battles."

The US has deployed MOABs only once before - during its 2017 raids on the Islamic State's cave and tunnel complex in Khorasan Province (ISKP) in Afghanistan. Afghan officials claimed that while 94 fighters of the Islamic State - Khorasan Province (ISKP) were killed in the blast, no civilians were harmed. However, there are unconfirmed reports of local civilian casualties and many houses destroyed.

The GBU-43/B, the US's most powerful non-nuclear bomb, was used once against the Islamic State-Khorasan.

The pallet is deployed from the rear door of the MC-130H or C-17 aircraft.

Hot gases, smoke and debris rise in a mushroom cloud.

Designed to detonate a few feet above the ground, the MOAB sends out a deadly wave of fire upon detonation, blasting buildings, cave vents, and other hard-surface structures.

"Its purpose is to create an exceptionally powerful explosion at level one," Stamgenier said.

Col. Nidal Abu Zeid, a military expert, told Al Jazeera that the bomb did not need to be hit to detonate, and that its massive blast would destroy everything above ground within a radius of 1 kilometer (0.6 miles).

Abu Zaid said it is likely that the US aims to use the high-explosive MOAB to completely destroy Iran's ground force positions above ground and reach its underground facilities, including Mount Klang, which Trump has previously threatened to attack.

However, Magnier said that the radius and level of destruction of a bomb depends largely on the terrain it is used on and the population size of the area. He added that it may not be particularly effective against targets buried deep underground.

Some of Iran's nuclear sites that the United States may want to target, such as the Fordow complex and a site under construction at Kahlang Mountain, are heavily fortified and deeply buried.

"Its large explosive charge can produce devastating explosive effects against personnel, equipment and vulnerable structures," Magnier said. "Afghanistan operation shows its intended use against cave and tunnel situation. "It does not show the ability to destroy any type of underground facilities."

While its detonation can reach underground, the MOAB is not specifically designed to hit deep concrete or mountain rock as a "bunker-busting" bomb. America's most powerful bunker buster is the GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator. Weighing around 30,000 pounds (13,600 kg), including the 2,700 kg (6,000 lb) warhead, the precision-guided bomb is made of high-strength steel and designed to penetrate up to 200 feet (61 m) underground before detonating.

This has already been done - in 2017 in Afghanistan.

However, Magnir told Al Jazeera that in addition to being guaranteed to effectively hit underground targets, it could be difficult to deploy the necessary aircraft in areas of Iran where nuclear sites are located. Stealth bombers that are better suited for this terrain are not capable of carrying this size of bomb.

He added: "The use of this bomb can destroy the infrastructure without persuading Iran to give any concessions, and he pointed out that its deployment will have the risk of turning a "spectacular event" into an event that will ultimately bring little political results for Washington.

"The question I would ask any commander advocating its use is: What does this weapon do that no other existing weapon can do, and how does that result in an achievable political agreement?" Magnier said.

He added: "If the response is focused on the scene of the explosion, this proposal is stronger as a political theater than a military strategy."

CNN reported that in private conversations, Trump sought a "decisive" end to the war that would prove Washington was invincible.

Experts say that a MOAB attack would likely trigger a major response from Iran, warning that Tehran could even retaliate by attacking its neighbors that host US military assets.

For months, Iranian security officials have speculated about a possible attack on countries such as Kuwait to arrest American forces and force Washington to surrender.

In May, during a pause in hostilities, Kuwait claimed that sailors from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had infiltrated the country's Bubiyan Island, leading to an exchange of fire between Iranian and Kuwaiti forces. A Kuwaiti was wounded and four Iranian soldiers were captured.

Iran denied the attack on the island and said that the forces' navigation system was damaged.

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps security adviser Mohammad Reza Naqdi warned on Tuesday that Iran could capture troops if Washington launches ground strikes, although military experts have long dismissed Trump's previous threats to attack Iran's mountainous region.

"If the United States launches a ground attack, they will be captured by so many of their troops that they will be forced to fly the white flag," he said.

Experts say that Iran is preparing for another round of war by stockpiling weapons, strengthening key nuclear and defense sites, and gathering supporters.

Mohsen Rezaei, head of the National Security Council, threatened in a television program on Sunday that Iran will attack regional digital infrastructure, including communication cables, data centers and artificial intelligence facilities in the United Arab Emirates, etc., if the US attacks resume.