Reply To: Proliferation?

[Jolly Roger]

Transmute wrote: Ok here is a idea for a weapon system: what if there was a large drone plane fitted with unshielded D-T fusion generator, they fly it over enemy territory like a crop duster and irradiate everyone to death, like a neutron bomb only no blast, better precision and delightfully evil.

Apparently, a Focus Fusion reactor would have to be highly modified to run on D-T. Even then, the neutron density would not be high enough to be an effective weapon. The aircraft would have to patrol a small area for a long time, which would be suspicious. Even if the reactor were clandestinely left on a rooftop, it would soon be detected and destroyed.

An unshielded p-B11 reactor X-ray source may be a concern, however. I would think that it would be easy to remove the shielding from a standard FF reactor. But Time-Distance-Shielding applies to X-rays (and neutrons, for that matter). For maximum radiation damage, exposure time must be maximized and distance from the source and shielding must be minimized. The X-rays would not be immediately lethal, and the aircraft would have to be flown low and slow to deliver a dangerous dose. An outdoor sports event would be a likely target, but intended victims could scatter (distance) and seek shelter (shielding) very quickly (time).

Or how about a fusion bomb, a fusion generator is used to try to start a chain fusion reaction,

According to info on the FF site, FF cannot start a runaway chain reaction, which a bomb requires.

There are easier ways than FF to cause mass destruction. There are a few Soviet nuclear weapons that are unaccounted for. We should be worried about those.