4 ms·
Calling it a "battery" is disingenuous. An RTG doesn't fit the typical definition of a battery -- it doesn't store electrical energy. A better name would be "
by Wingman4l7 14y ago
Calling it a "battery" is disingenuous. An RTG doesn't fit the typical definition of a battery -- it doesn't store electrical energy. A better name would be "power supply". </pedant>
- DeepDuh 14y agoWell it does - it stores nuclear binding energy that's unstable enough to be extracted and stable enough to last for x years. It's a nuclear battery just like convential ones are chemical batteries.
- Wingman4l7 14y agoYou're not clipping leads to the ends of it and getting current, though -- you're using thermocouples. It's more of a "heat battery", I suppose.
- DeepDuh 14y agoAnd now draw a black box around that whole system. What do you get? A voltage source, right? Engineers usually don't care much about the principles of how something is made. As long as it can be abstracted to a known concept you're all good and you can integrate it with your given tools, e.g. a combinational circuit plan.