NOVA bomb

"This is the prototype NOVA Bomb, nine fusion warheads encased in lithium triteride armor. When detonated, it compresses its fusionable material to neutron-star density, boosting the thermonuclear yield a hundredfold. I am Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb, temporarily in command of the UNSC military base Reach. To the Covenant uglies that might be listening, you have a few seconds to pray to your damned heathen gods. You all have a nice day in hell..."

- Vice Admiral Danforth Whitcomb's recording on the NOVA bomb right before it is activated in the space adjacent to the planet Joyous Exultation.

Overview
The NOVA Bomb is a cluster of nine fusion warheads encased in lithium triteride. When the warheads are activated, the lithium triteride shell focuses the blast upon itself, multiplying the destructive power a hundredfold, giving the NOVA Bomb an unprecedented payload for its size. Its capability to destroy a planet gave it the nickname of "Planet-Killer". This may be misleading in the fact that it will do nothing more than superficial damage to a decent sized planet, but instead wipe out the entire population on it. It should be noted that on the one recorded event when a NOVA Bomb was detonated that it scorched one-quarter of the planet due to a concentration of thermal energy inside of the planet's atmosphere. Any further detailed analysis on the full power of this bomb has yet to be mentioned in the Halo Series but it is known that it has the most destructive capabilities in the UNSC arsenal to date.

Theory
The NOVA Bomb's explosive power is quickly gone due to the lack of particles or atmosphere around it when it's detonated in space. This results in a much quicker release of energy, with the possibly of even further multiplying its damage to ships, planets, moons, and other celestial objects due to the lack of energy absorbing particles. However if detonated inside a planet's atmosphere, a portion of the total energy generated would be dispersed depending on the atmosphere.

History
It was intended for the NOVA Bomb be used in space against the Covenant Fleet during the Battle of Reach. In the novel they were left on Reach and "repurposed" by Admiral Whitcomb. His reasoning was that "Either the Covenant pack those bombs up and take them home for study, a possibility that I hope to God happens. A bomb like that could crack their homeworld in two. Or, the bombs stay here and they'll stop the Covenant on Reach..."

The only documented triggering of a NOVA Bomb occurred when it was accidentally detonated by a group of Huragok. The Huragok, through their curiosity and frenzied obsession, fixed the circuitry despite a grunt's attempts to stop them. This resulted in its detonation. The resulting explosion occurred between a Covenant outpost planet Joyous Exultation and its moon, Malhiem, scorching a quarter of the planet and shattering its nearby moon. The resulting winds on Joyous Exultation flattened cities and spawned tidal waves. Every ship within the NOVA Bomb's range boiled and vaporized in an instant. This was actually extremely unfortunate as the Elites, led by Imperial Admiral Xytan 'Jar Wattinree could have shattered the Brute fleet, thus effectively destroying the Covenant. This could have turned the tide of the war for both the UNSC and the Covenant Separatists. The NOVA Bomb explosion severely damaged three-quarters of the fleet that was there, totaling over 300 ships. Only eighteen Destroyers, two Cruisers, one Carrier and the Flagship Incorruptible escaped the NOVA Bomb explosion due to a Slipspace jump en masse just seconds prior to the explosion.

Delta Halo
In Ghosts of Onyx, Cortana requests that the UNSC launch a NOVA Bomb around Delta Halo and High Charity to stop the spread of the Flood and destroy the Covenant Holy Capital. However, this request was not granted likely due to the low number of nuclear warheads left and their need to protect the inner colonies. High Charity was not bombed and landed on the Ark. It is also possible that this request was granted, but that High Charity went into slipspace before the warhead could be launched. This last possibility is highly unlikely because a nuclear warhead is very easily spotted when transitioning from a slipspace jump.

Trivia

 * The NOVA Bomb was a bomb in the book Starship Troopers, wherein it is described as "being able to split a planet in half." It is likely that this inspired the Nova Bomb.
 * A NOVA Bomb is also the common name for the heavy bomb used in Starfox games. Though not nearly as powerful as the Halo and Starship Troopers bombs of the same name, the NOVA Bomb is one of the most powerful weapons you can use in the Starfox series.
 * The NOVA Bomb also appears in the Andromeda TV series. In that show it is a weapon capable of causing stars to go into the supernova stage, therefore destroying the entire system around it.