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That's why the USSR did it. Tsar Bomba is still serving its purpose 60 years later! The USSR's followup actions give it away, though: they stopped pursuing hig
by jjoonathan 6y ago
That's why the USSR did it. Tsar Bomba is still serving its purpose 60 years later!
The USSR's followup actions give it away, though: they stopped pursuing higher yields, even though there was no theoretical or engineering limit prohibiting them, and instead chased the USA down the path of miniaturization. SLBMs and MIRVs were the future and everyone knew it.
- monocasa 6y agoEveryone stopped pursuing them because the massive falloff of effectiveness at higher yields. The explosions got large enough that the difference in air pressure at higher altitudes meant that more and more of the energy released was going straight up rather than directed at the ground. I'd call that an engineering limit.
- jjoonathan 6y agoIt's an engineering limit to effectiveness but not an engineering limit to higher yield. I think we agree and are just nailing down the terminology here.