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I've read that in general space agencies are very hesitant to launch anything into space with a nuclear generator out of fear that if the rocket exploded on the
by macrael 12y ago
I've read that in general space agencies are very hesitant to launch anything into space with a nuclear generator out of fear that if the rocket exploded on the way up it could scatter radioactive material across our atmosphere.
- codeulike 12y agohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosmos_954 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosmos_954 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SNAP-10A http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SNAP-10A I think there's been others as well
- macrael 12y agoBoth of those are pre-Challenger and the first paragraph of Kosmos article reads: "Kosmos 954 (Russian: Космос 954) was a reconnaissance satellite launched by the Soviet Union in 1977. A malfunction prevented safe separation of its onboard nuclear reactor; when the satellite reentered the Earth's atmosphere the following year it scattered radioactive debris over northern Canada, prompting an extensive cleanup operation." so caution seems reasonable.
- jsmthrowaway 12y agoChallenger was not the first explosion of a spacecraft in flight. Far from it. Apollo 13 taught NASA far more about safekeeping of radioisotope generators than any explosion on the way to orbit.