Maybe they could convert medium and smaller ships to nuclear power? Aircraft are going to be difficult to decarbonize no matter what way you slice it. I think AbramsX was already looking at a piston engine instead of a turbine to decrease fuel consumption.
It would be very cool, but using an unshelled nuclear core as a heat source for a ram jet has some pretty bad radiation side effects for the air going though it.
I was talking about the shielded core version, and with non nuclear warheads, basically it would specialize in being fast as all fuck and having cheap munitions to shoot missiles out of the air with.
More importantly, making it public that you’re dismantling warheads to achieve this, make a display of exiting the nuclear arms race by developing a tool meant to pose a direct challenge to nuclear hegemony.
Maybe they could convert medium and smaller ships to nuclear power? Aircraft are going to be difficult to decarbonize no matter what way you slice it. I think AbramsX was already looking at a piston engine instead of a turbine to decrease fuel consumption.
Abrams X is possibly a hybrid. Strangely quiet for a tank
That would make sense for thermal management for low IR signature too.
Part of me can’t help but imagine a helpful switch from our nuclear arsenal would be to invest all that fissile material into RAMjet style drones.
Being able to keep them airborne for such extended periods means you can have a shitton more coverage to decapitate a first strike with
It would be very cool, but using an unshelled nuclear core as a heat source for a ram jet has some pretty bad radiation side effects for the air going though it.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Pluto
I was talking about the shielded core version, and with non nuclear warheads, basically it would specialize in being fast as all fuck and having cheap munitions to shoot missiles out of the air with.
More importantly, making it public that you’re dismantling warheads to achieve this, make a display of exiting the nuclear arms race by developing a tool meant to pose a direct challenge to nuclear hegemony.