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Putin, before vote, unveils 'invincible' nuclear weapons to counter West
President Vladimir Putin unveiled an array of new nuclear weapons on Thursday, in one of his most bellicose speeches in years, saying they could hit almost any point in the world and evade a U.S.-built missile shield. [...] His remarks were greeted with scepticism in Washington, where officials cast doubt on whether Russia has added any new capabilities to its nuclear arsenal beyond those already known to the U.S. military and intelligence agencies.
[...] Among weapons that Putin said were either in development or ready was a new intercontinental ballistic missile "with a practically unlimited range" able to attack via the North and South Poles and bypass any missile defense systems.
Putin also spoke of a small nuclear-powered engine that could be fitted to what he said were low-flying, highly maneuverable cruise missiles, giving them a practically unlimited range. The new engine meant Russia was able to make a new type of weapon - nuclear missiles powered by nuclear rather than conventional fuel. "Nothing like it in the world exists," Putin told the audience. "At some point it will probably appear (elsewhere) but by that time our guys will have devised something else."
Other new super weapons he listed included underwater nuclear drones, a supersonic weapon and a laser weapon. In one of his video clip demos, a weapon appeared to be hovering over what looked like a map of the state of Florida.
(Score: 3, Informative) by khallow on Friday March 02 2018, @06:44AM (3 children)
That can be done and "small" is somewhat relative. Jet engine that blasts air through a mass of concentrated U-235 or Pu-239 which is barely critical at the operating temperature. For example, the US has some experience with a nuclear ramjet [wikipedia.org] and has actually run one for five minutes. Smaller sizes can be achieved with weapon-grade (or higher) concentrations of nuclear fuel. This would actually be the most dangerous of the weapons listed, but then again, Russians even if they're developing a viable design are far from being able to deploy it in the field.
Despite the unlikely viability of many of these weapon systems, it appears to be a rather effective bit of propaganda on Russia's part.
(Score: 2) by realDonaldTrump on Saturday March 03 2018, @01:21PM (2 children)
I love your link about the SLAM Ramjet. I love the name, it sounds like a very rough, very sexy porno, or a delicious and very filling breakfast. It's not porn, it's not food, it's much better. It's a nuclear missile that runs on nuclear. The engine is nuclear. It worked very well, we built it and put it in MOTHBALLS, why? And Russia is getting that, something a lot like that. They're upgrading their nuclear arsenal tremendously. Because of me. I said America is going to have the best and most awesome nuclear arsenal, the likes of which the world has never seen. We're MODERNIZING. With very small, very quiet nuclear bombs. Like the ones we dropped on Japan. And even smaller. Because the Russians are getting those, they call them tactical. Those are like a buffet, the Russians can have as many as they want. And so can we. So we will! And let's bring back the SLAM. Terrific name, terrific weapon. Invented in America, now they're building them in Russia. Our workers & factories sitting idle. Shameful!
(Score: 2, Funny) by khallow on Saturday March 03 2018, @02:44PM (1 child)
(Score: 2) by realDonaldTrump on Saturday March 03 2018, @11:40PM
We have so many missiles. So many submarines. And so many bombers, they call it the Triad because it's 3 things (so complicated). But we don't have those things, those 3 things, running loose. Not anymore, it happened in the '50s, it happened in the '60s. And in 1980. In the great states of Arkansas, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Indiana. And so many foreign Countries. But our nuclear arsenal, since 1980, it's been VERY SAFE. And even then, you could say it was very safe. We dropped so many Hydrogen bombs by accident. But they didn't hurt anybody. Our government would Hydrogen bomb people by mistake -- big mistake -- and it was a big secret. Nobody knew they'd been bombed. 1950s, 1960s cyber wasn't great. Many problems. But the 1970s cyber is great. We modernized, we're using that for our nuclear now and it's very reliable. SLAM Ramjet, all they had was '60s cyber, the missile worked great but if they had an accident, very big mess. But maybe we can modernize it. Put in that '70s digital. And we'll have nothing to worry about. But the Russians will have A LOT to worry about! Big time.