Army going nukular
Ah, the old days when Jimmy Carter had been a nuclear officer but couldn’t even pronounce it.
Well, the Army is getting into the nuclear business. Not with ‘special weapons’ (somewhere I have a photo of a Special Weapons transport truck driving by some clueless German anti-nuke demonstrators) although some of the heavy arty and missile units probably just shrug at the thought – nope, someone may be using some sense and saying “well, solar and wind aren’t reliable – what can we do instead? and getting the answer: nuclear power – coming to a base near you real soon.
Many public and private sectors are reducing their reliance on dirty energy sources like coal, oil, and natural gas, including the U.S. Army. The organization and the Department of Energy are developing and installing nuclear microreactors on bases throughout the country, Army secretary Dan Driscoll and energy secretary Christopher Wright announced in October.
While nuclear energy is not renewable energy, it produces about 960 fewer tons of carbon than coal per gigawatt-hour of electricity, according to Our World in Data. It is even more efficient than renewable resources like hydropower, wind, and solar. Nuclear power is also safer than most of these fuels, accounting for 0.03 deaths per terawatt-hour of electricity.
The small-sized reactors, like those the Janus Program will use, are more affordable to construct than entire power plants. They can also operate for 10 years or more without refueling, according to the Department of Energy, minimizing nuclear waste and the challenges that come with it.
Don’t have to build an 88 gigawatt reactor for most usages.
The article cites the evils of uranium mining as a negative. Given the negatives associated with every other form of power generation, starting with gross inefficiency – one would think the power plants would look pretty desirable in comparison.
Now, we just need to remember – wasn’t it during the Obama administration that a large deal in uranium (see: Uranium One sale to the Russsian company Rosatom) occured? Funny that.
They still own somewhat less than 20% of our uranium.
Category: "Your Tax Dollars At Work", Science and Technology
Q: the Russkies supposedly own 20% of US uranium (raw ore? yellowcake?), but do they have possession of it? Has it been transported to Mother Russia? If not, can the Trump administration just seize it back? And tell Russia to see the former Sec of State Hellary for repayment?
I still like the idea of a jeep load of junior enlisted driving around with a Davy Crockett nuclear bazooka.
E-4 Mafia as a nuclear power. Wow.
Hush. They’re listening. That is, if they really exist…
You’ll know them by the coon skin headgear.
Well, an inert training round…
Wasn’t their once a specialty/qualification badge in the Army for Reactor Operator? Could have sworn I once saw one back in the 90s.
Yes, there was. Actually, there were four levels of qualification: Basic, 2nd Class, 1st Class, and Shift Supervisor. The program ran from 18 Jun 65 – 01 Oct 90 and was based out of Fort Belvoir, VA.
FSN for one of the badges was 8455-951-4523 (Nuclear Reactor Operator, 1st Class) and they all can be purchased yet today for the low, rock-bottom price of $15.59 plus tax. /s/
What is the FSN for the soldier portable SADM, Special Atomic Demolition Munition?
Looked everywhere, cannot find. Not even listed in FM 5-26.
My bet is the property book LIN/FSN was way above the security clearance level of your lowly Supply Sergeant/PLL Clerk, so not available to your everyday GI who might inadvertently order one by mistake when ordering tent pegs or 55-gallon drums of PD-680.
I doubt he’d remember the numbers, but my dad ( engineer Lt 1966-68 ish) talked about those demo packs a few times..
I know they exist or did back in the 70’s, I couldn’t see one but as Bn. S-2, I was responsible for maintaining the proficiency records for our SADM ODA’s regular training with the mockup device.
The SADM was just a repurposed Davey Crockett warhead. My crew in Germany was tasked with maintenance on (old) 8″, Lance, and SADM. That was back in ’82-84, but I never heard that they decommissioned the SADM when they scrapped our tactical nukes.
Like the time someone ordered, and received, a cruiser anchor?
Yep, I was there on Carson at that time (Mar/Apr 1985). Some company PLL Clerk down in 2/34 Armor thought he ordered an Infrared Headlight for a M60 Tank and instead got a 7 1/2 Ton Boat Anchor. He was only one digit off (368-4772 versus 368-4972) in the NIIN and I saw the anchor sitting in the 704th Maint Supply yard before it got re-shipped (under the cover of darkness) down to Pueblo Army Depot.
We all had a good laugh about that one.
’twas 1976, FSNs had just become NSNs with the addition of -00 or -01. A buddy of mine was the guy in medical supply who ordered stuff from the DLA depots. Somehow, he punched the wrong numbers into the card and fed it into the computer. I guess no one looked at the order or backorder report. We received a vertical stabilizer and it wasn’t for any plane assigned to that base. The reaction from the supply officer was a mix of shhhh, oops, and shaddupyourmouth.
In the Navy we just earned the title of “F***ing nuc” no special badge.
I was one of the lucky bastids who had the “honor and privilege” of going to Idaho Falls, aka Idiot Flats, for prototype.
Drove close to SL-1 site twice daily.
I remember the movie they showed us just before we left Orlando about that site. Good times.
I grew up not too far from Idaho Falls (Driggs). You nuc types sure can’t drive in the snow. I made a lot of beer money pulling ya’ll out of the ditch.
I have many in laws there in Idaho, mostly along the Oregon border. Some of them are still not happy their young relative married someone from the east coast.
Image courtesy Wiki
So that’s what those tats were on her arm…
Is the Shift Supervisor badge a different color or is it glowing?
The last time the army tried nuclear power we had the SL-1 incident.
I don’t think 98% of America even knows about that.
If the leftists find out about it will they keep quiet about it since it happened over 60 years ago, will they take to the streets because we are over due, or, will they take to the streets because FSA?
It’s not like it’s a secret.
For the curious, Wikipedia has a pretty good, if gruesome, article. Hopefully required reading for the new guys.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SL-1
I don’t like it.
If we don’t pump CO2 into the atmosphere, what are the plants going to eat?
Will the harvest grow smaller?
Think of the children!
The children may have my rutabagas…
… and zucchini.
As a former 55G, the Army should have never given up their nukes. 155mm and 8″ artillery should have the canned sunshine option.
The Davey Crockett was still under the two-man rule. It took an officer and an NCO to launch, so the E-4 mafia was out of luck.
Being in the Nuke Personnel Reliability Program and pulling NRAS duty. The good old days….
And officers never leave their keys, weapon, CEOI, or other sensitive gear with their drivers….
(Looks up. Waits for lightning bolt….)
ooohhhhh “CEOI.” Holy Cow — it’s been 40 years since last I heard that acronym.
” It took an officer ……..”
Somehow I am not reassured. From what I have read it was issued at the battalion level, which pretty much guaranteed it would get used.
Exasperated PFC: “Lieutenant, do you know the difference between a Second Lieutenant and a PFC?”
WP 2LT: “No Private. Why don’t you tell me?”
PFC: “Sir, The PFC has been promoted for knowing how to do his job. Twice. Sir.”
LTC: “Stop fucking with my mailclerk, Lieutenant.”
Will the common sense ever stop? No sooner than i retire last year and the army is rolling out a variety of good things.
Awwww. At first I thought you meant they were going to start bring back 0812s.
These small molten salt reactors are the future(I’m assuming molten salt but I am not familiar with the Janus Program so it could be something else)…because the molten salts are used as coolants the lower pressure and higher temps represent a significant safety advantage as the fuel is dissolved directly into the salts. and moves through the core…which also means if necessary the salts can be dumped through gravity into a subcritical holding tank ending the reaction and preventing the risk of meltdown like a Chernobyl…
More efficient than anything previous, and safer…it’s a win/win for everyone. But it still has the stigma of being “nukular” which scares the shit out of people, perhaps rightly so…
“it still has the stigma of being “nukular” which scares the shit out of people, perhaps rightly so…”
Another legacy of Hanoi Jane and her bullshit “china syndrome” movie…
Well. speaking of Atomic Annie;
https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/11525
Heh, heh!! FIRE!!!!!
(KOB somewhere… )
FAPFAPFAPFAPFAPFAPFAP!
I have never understood why the smaller reactors on cvn’s or ssn’sd couldn’t be used for power generation on bases, can any of you navy glow in the dark people can explain it?
Based on a way-above-critical-mass pile of 90+% U235.
Far harder to steal out of a boat.
Far closer to the attention of bored junior enlisted, and possibly junior enlisted Infantry.
Nah. (Grin)
My Cousin was a civilian observer onboard the USS Iwo Jima LPH 2 during one of the nuke tests and worked with Dr Hydrogen bomb Teller. He sent me paperwork on what to do while aboard the ship. Gotta look for the paper work.