Questions tagged [nuclear-power]
Questions about generation of heat and power by nuclear phenomena, usually but not limited to radioactive decay (fission reactions). For weapons relying on nuclear phenomena, consider [weapons] and [weapon-mass-destruction] instead.
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How can a summoning circle dilute the effects of radiation over a wide surface area?
Summoning circles are a way to communicate with entities within the ethereal realm from beyond the veil. A mage uses the summoning circle as a bridge to bring the entity from its realm and ...
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Running a nuclear power plant in the post-apocalypse: is it possible?
So, the apocalypse has occurred, and for about 150 years humanity spent its time wallowing in misery, sorrow, and so on.
So moving on, in the northwest of Nevada there’s an abandoned nuclear reactor, ...
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How could a brown dwarf be used for energy?
I've been thinking about a civilization on a planet orbiting around a brown dwarf drifting in interstellar space. Obviously, by definition, a brown dwarf is too small to have much fusion on its own. I'...
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If people were the size of squirrels, would we ever have developed nuclear fission?
If people were about 1 foot tall and weighed about 1 pound, would we ever have made a reactor or an atomic bomb? Because critical mass doesn't change, the scale of the project to mine and process ...
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How Can An Alien Ship Harness Nuclear Energy? [closed]
A massive alien vessel is buried in a sandbank under the sea. Research subs detect a vast supply of nuclear energy held within it.
I've been researching power plants, fission and the processes that ...
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Do chemicals from nuclear reprocessing waste remain radioactive? Are they flammable?
I'm writing a story about a town whose residents all work at a nuclear reprocessing site. Some teenagers begin to hang out near a small body of water close to the site that they call "the swamp". The ...
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How can a mage who can only cast in-situ thermonuclear explosion spell moves up the ranks?
Set in the modern day, many talented citizens especially those who can cast magic spells are encouraged to join the army. A very small group of mages can tap into the nuclear forces at will but they ...
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How much of the earth would be in an exclusion zone if all 450+ nuclear reactors failed simultaneously?
I'm about to flood the planet with magic, which doesn't play nice with tech, especially power. The only places tech will still work are Null Zones which cancel magic due to deposits of minerals (the ...
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How long can the entire civilization be powered by converting all nuclear arsenal into commercial reactor fuel?
Imagine a miracle happened and all leaders decided to wind back the minute hand of the doomsday clock and passed a bill that can transform all kinds of nuclear weapons into fuel for power plants, ...
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Usability of fusion scoops in deep space?
How effective would it be to use fusion scoops as an actually effective method of interstellar travel? How quickly could you generate thrust? How much fuel would such a thing need, and would it work ...
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What would be the best way to power a mecha? [closed]
While searching around, I kept hearing that fusion was a good choice, but how best to covert the energy to electricity was an issue.
However, during my research, I came across this:
Photon-...
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Good explanation for why aliens can't build nuclear engines?
"Aliens used uranium and plutonium to generate energy for thousands of years. However, by the time they got into space exploration, they've used up every last bit of it. That's why they'll have to try ...
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Could I build a nuclear reactor based on Bernoulli's principle?
So I was recently inspired by the answers that I saw on this stack exchange to the following question: Feasibility of H.G. Wells' Continuously-Exploding Atomic Bombs
And it occurred to me that ...
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Would there be any place for nuclear-powered spaceships in a world where antimatter propulsion is the standard?
Nuclear fission rockets are becoming obsolete and have been superseded by the more efficient antimatter engines, which have nearly 100% efficiency and do not produce pollutants.
I'm wondering this: in ...
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Is it possible to cover up a nuclear accident occurring at Area 51?
In 1986, the greatest heist ever attempted was carried out in secrecy not even KGB is aware of it. A group of special agents managed to steal the blueprint for RBMK-9600, a nuclear reactor which uses ...
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