Re:Ask HN: Why can't nuclear waste be launched into the sun?
by nabla9 on Sunday October 25, 2020 @11:54PM
(#24892697)
Some types of fresh nuclear fuel can be transported trough air, with limited amounts at the time.
Used nuclear fuel in those flasks are not transported trough air. Always by land or sea. On the sea they are transported in purpose-built ships.
Small amounts of highly radioactive nuclear fuel are transported trough air but they be in extremely secure type C containers that survive crash from cruising altitude. Creating similar containers that survive crash from space launch would make launching very expensive. Most of the payload would be just the container and only small amounts would be radioactive material.
It's 1000 times cheaper to recycle nuclear fuel make nuclear reactors that use nuclear waste than shoot it into space. France does it in La Hague. The rest can be buried into the ground.
Used nuclear fuel in those flasks are not transported trough air. Always by land or sea. On the sea they are transported in purpose-built ships.
Small amounts of highly radioactive nuclear fuel are transported trough air but they be in extremely secure type C containers that survive crash from cruising altitude. Creating similar containers that survive crash from space launch would make launching very expensive. Most of the payload would be just the container and only small amounts would be radioactive material.
It's 1000 times cheaper to recycle nuclear fuel make nuclear reactors that use nuclear waste than shoot it into space. France does it in La Hague. The rest can be buried into the ground.