Comment on xkcd #2929: Good and Bad Ideas
szczuroarturo@programming.dev 1 month agoBut then how would you launch nukes on orbit without the risk of accudental nuclear explosion?
Comment on xkcd #2929: Good and Bad Ideas
szczuroarturo@programming.dev 1 month agoBut then how would you launch nukes on orbit without the risk of accudental nuclear explosion?
frezik@midwest.social 1 month ago
Implosion-type nukes are all but impossible to make go off that way. They need a whole bunch of small explosives to go off very precisely to squeeze the core in just the right way. A short circuit or a crash won’t have the necessary precision. This isn’t entirely safe, either–it can still cause a small explosion with a flash of fallout and radiation–but it’s a manageable problem.
Gun-types (Little Boy was one) are easier to go off on accident, but the US retired its last gun-type design decades ago. I don’t think Russia used them much, either. They’re only good for smaller bombs, and their safety issues make them questionable for any use. Smaller nuclear powers aren’t bothering with them.