

The race is on!




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RE: Humbug
By masher2 (blog) on 6/14/2006 11:00:59 AM , Rating: 2
> "None of the currently US deployed nuclear weapons are in any shape or form likely to just detonate. The "fuse" on these weapons have been continously improved"

The risk isn't due to a fuse malfunction, its innate to the the so-called "physics package" of the device. When exposed to an external neutron flux, or a high-compression event (external explosion) there is a very slight but still nonzero chance.

Miminizing this risk further is a design goal of the new warhead...but there are other, more important goals. Maximizing safety during the manufacturing and assembly process, greater device longevity, less need for maintenance, testing, and verification, etc, etc. Essentially, the goal is a unit with very long 'shelf life', meaning we can meet detterent goals with a smaller, more reliable (and thus safer) nuclear arsenal.


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