Small Nukes for Bunker Busting

[bullett308]

Yeah If we use a nuke all the other clowns who have em will think what the heck we can to.
imagine that:(

[NUKE]

Originally posted by Capt. Pork
Will it be called 'Satellite rain' -- as in the weapon from Syndicate Wars?

Intense idea, though, I'd love to see test footage if and when they choose to develope it.

Actually they are known as "Rods from God"

Space weapons

Colloquially called "Rods from God," this weapon would consist of orbiting platforms stocked with tungsten rods perhaps 20 feet long and one foot in diameter that could be satellite-guided to targets anywhere on Earth within minutes. Accurate within about 25 feet, they would strike at speeds upwards of 12,000 feet per second, enough to destroy even hardened bunkers several stories underground.

No explosives would be needed. The speed and weight of the rods would lend them all the force they need.
Space planes


Closer to operational readiness is a hypersonic bomber which could attack nearly any target in the world within four hours from bases in the United States.

The FALCON (an acronym for Force Application and Launch from the Continental United States) would be sent into the upper atmosphere by a boost vehicle and cruise at an altitude of 100,000 feet at speeds up to 12 times the speed of sound. The first flight demonstration is scheduled for 2006.

Air Force Space Command in Colorado Springs is already thinking about a follow-on to FALCON -- a genuine space plane that would fly even higher and faster, stay up longer and carry more weapons.

"Once a target is identified, the space plane can respond from the U.S. and strike worldwide targets in under an hour," SpaceCom researchers said in a white paper last year.

A key advantage of a space plane, the writers said, is its weapons could enter the atmosphere over a target, so there would be no need to seek overflight permission from other countries. "Technology exists today to create this capability and evolve it now," they wrote.

I have read that by 2025 the US will have a global srike capability anywhere on earth within minuts. Do some searches for "space weaopons" or "space planes" Interesting stuff

[Nilsen]

What Nuke posted sounds like a clever and effective system for penetration

[GRUNHERZ]

1 foot wide 20 foot long tungsten penetrators weigh a lot... The costs of putting that up into space in any worthwile quantities would be "astronomical"...

[NUKE]

Originally posted by GRUNHERZ
1 foot wide 20 foot long tungsten penetrators weigh a lot... The costs of putting that up into space in any worthwile quantities would be "astronomical"...

I wonder how much it would cost? I thought it was a cool idea myself, but maybe it would cost too much.

On the other hand, maybe it wouldn't cost any more than the b-2 program, or maybe even cruise missles. Don't cruise missles cost over a million a piece?

[Golfer]

I dont know about the latest and greatest, but I thought they were on the order of $250,000-$500,000 a pop for a tomahawk.

[Bodhi]

Originally posted by Golfer
I dont know about the latest and greatest, but I thought they were on the order of $250,000-$500,000 a pop for a tomahawk.

I think a tomahawk runs around $2 -$5 million depending on its targeting package.

[GRUNHERZ]

Well getting stuff into orbit currently costs $10,000 a pound...

So figuring it all out, and if my math is right:

Volume penetrator: meters^3   0.4448
Density: Steel kg/m^3   8030
Density: Tungsten kg/m^3   19250
Average density: kg/m^3   13640
Weight of penetrator: kg   6067.072
Weight of penetrator: lbs   13347.5584
Multiplied by $10,000/lb launch cost:   133475584
   
Cost just to launch a single penetrator:   $133,475,584

[NUKE]

Originally posted by GRUNHERZ
Well getting stuff into orbit currently costs $10,000 a pound...

So figuring it all out, and if my math is right:

Volume penetrator: meters^3   0.4448
Density: Steel kg/m^3   8030
Density: Tungsten kg/m^3   19250
Average density: kg/m^3   13640
Weight of penetrator: kg   6067.072
Weight of penetrator: lbs   13347.5584
Multiplied by $10,000/lb launch cost:   133475584
   
Cost just to launch a single penetrator:   $133,475,584

 The payload of the shuttle was up to 65,000.00 pounds but it's liftoff weight was 4.5 million pounds. The cost for a shuttle launch was about 300 million I think.

I would think a one way launch platform could do it for a lot less $$

The Shuttle got the cost down to 4, 000.00 a pound or so....

[Chairboy]

Originally posted by NUKE
The Shuttle got the cost down to 4, 000.00 a pound or so....

Bzzzzzt!  Wrong answer.  The payload rate for the shuttle is currently estimated to be between $10,000 and $12,000per lb.

A good quote about this from someone in the space industry is that 'the amazing thing about the shuttle is that it's the only launcher that can make the Titan IV look economical.' (paraphrased)

This is telling as the Titan IV is a program frought with cost overruns, reliability problems, and astronomical (pardon the pun) launcher prices.

[BGBMAW]

boo..coem one guys.we are getting stuff into space cheaper and cheaper..just a matter of time..

You gusy see the disc thats is propelled into space by burts of light?...technology is badddddasssss


RODS OF GOD!!!...dam what a kikassname

[hawker238]

BGBMaw finished the bottle......

[Nilsen]

LOL hawker

[NUKE]

I still feel it's a good idea to put "Rods from God" into space.

I read that the shuttle got the cost per pound down to 4,400.00. I also read that a new shuttle had the estimated cost down to 100.00 per pound.

Who knows? The cost of the B-2 development compaired to the few bombers we got out of it was very high. I think space based weapons are logical choice to invest in for our future.

[Capt. Pork]

I'm all for 'Rods from God', allthough I think they should rename them: 'Rods from Fred'... Just because.