Talk:Nuclear pulse propulsion

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Contents 1 gamma scattering 2 Inconsistency with Project Orion article 3 Apollo reference 4 Ethical issues?

[edit] gamma scattering

what is "gamma scattering"? is it the same as compton scattering? ✈ James C. 09:05, 2004 Aug 11 (UTC)

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Given that there are many forms of nuclear pulse propulsion and only one Orion, I am going to split the article Maury 11:57, 22 Sep 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Inconsistency with Project Orion article

This article states (emphasis mine):

It was first developed as Project Orion by ARPA, after a suggestion by Stanislaw Ulam in 1957

However, on Project Orion:

Project Orion was the first engineering design study of spacecraft powered by nuclear pulse propulsion, an idea first proposed by Stanislaw Ulam in 1947.

Which year is correct, 1947 or 1957? -Banned 09:02, 26 April 2006 (UTC)

Project Orion began in 1957, however, Ulam first proposed the concept earlier. I'm not sure if 1947 is the correct date though, I have George Dyson's book at home I'll check the precise date for you this evening :) Quarkstorm 09:41, 26 April 2006 (UTC)

Ah, so it might be accurate, just phrased ambiguously. Banned 14:22, 28 April 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Apollo reference

I noticed this passage:

Some authorities say that President Kennedy initiated the Apollo program to buy off the technical enthusiasts backing the Orion program. The recent book by George Dyson says that one design proposal presented to Kennedy was a space-going nuclear battleship, which so offended him that he decided to end the program.

While I can easily believe the part about Kennedy not liking the "battleship", I find it extremely difficult to pay any heed to the former claim. Does anyone have a strong reference for this, other than George?

Maury 01:11, 29 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Ethical issues?

There were also ethical issues with launching such a vehicle within the Earth's magnetosphere. Calculations showed that the fallout from each takeoff would kill between 1 and 10 people.

This is not as satisfactory as the version found in the Project Orion article which reads: Freeman Dyson, group leader on the project, estimated back in the '60s that with conventional nuclear weapons, each launch would cause fatal cancers in ten human beings from the fallout (note that this estimate is disputed- see radiation hormesis).

But both versions fail to mention the Von Braun solution to atmospheric fallout danger was the simple expedient of putting Orion into orbit atop multiple Saturn V launch vehicles. Multiple launch vehicle procedure could have separated shielded fissile material from detonators so as to reduce danger from booster failure. Trilobitealive 06:42, 20 November 2006 (UTC)