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Originally Posted by The Reaper
Is .5 KT realistic from a fission reaction detonation?
TR
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I think .5 KT is realistic for a fission device. Why would they intentionally go that low when they could use the material more efficiency though? It’s not like we’re in the 40’s learning the physics as we go. The information is out there.
Here are a few reasons I can think of for the low yield.
1) They wanted to gather containment information from a low yield test before moving on to higher yields. Containment isn’t as simple as some believe and venting nasty stuff would really stir up the hornets nest.
2) Their design isn’t very sophisticated and they didn’t want to invest a lot of material on the first test. I imagine they learned something from the test that they can use to mature the design.
3) Maybe they just wanted to make a bang to prove they could. In which case they would probably go with something simple that was sure to work.
4) They are attempting to design a device that is as light as possible so they can weaponize it on a missile or other means. Fat Man and Little boy weren’t exactly light and small. With a simple design they would have to sacrifice yield for a reduction in weight and volume.
5) Perhaps they believe .5 KT is a large enough yield for them. After all, what's the point in destroying the enemy with a nuclear blast if you'll kill half your country with the fallout?
All that said I’m more inclined to think they didn’t intend to get .5 KT. I think they don’t fully understand the nuclear physics and/or the shock physics involved and the device was a “dud”. If you want to scare or impress someone you make the biggest bang you can. When people are questioning if it was even a nuclear test you didn’t really impress anyone. It would be awesome if they prove they faked it though.
Agree/Disagree?
