Kiwi TNT: An Explosive Nuclear Rocket Test

Have you ever wondered what would happen if a nuclear rocket engine exploded?? Wonder no more!
Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory successfully constructed three working nuclear rocket engines as part of the Rover Program. Though these propulsion reactors were never flight tested, these engineering marvels continue to stand among the great technical achievements of Los Alamos.
The first generation of Rover rocket engines were dubbed Kiwis. These were never intended to fly, hence the name. The culminating test of the Kiwi series was called Kiwi TNT (Transient Nuclear Test). In this test, a Kiwi rocket was intentionally exploded at the Nevada Test Site. Find out why in this exciting film from Los Alamos!

[@Muonium1]

This is absolutely incredible video. I have been aware of that single picture of this test's explosion for many years, but have never seen any video of it at all anywhere. I suspect this is the first public release of this test video? It's reminiscent of the BORAX excursion experiments done in Idaho, but more spectacular. That we can actually see the blue airglow of gamma and beta ionization at criticality is astounding. I suppose 10,000 MW-seconds is equal to 10 gigajoules, or maybe a couple tons TNT yield? Due to the relatively low overall burnup at only 10^20 fissions total, or I guess a few megawatt hours/

[@AlexanderSchreiber]

10.000 MW-seconds = 10 GJ = 2.4 tons of TNT according to various calculators.

[@adrianspeeder]

"You didn't' see graphite!"

[@martinbaker8581]

Thank you for uploading this video, Mr Carr.

[@remasterus]

Nobody can say Physicists don't have SOME sense of humor...lol 'TNT'

[@jaydugger3291]

Thank you!

[@davidjohannsen9545]

As always, thank you Mr. Carr for the very interesting video. Is there a written source on the nuclear rocket program that you particularly recommend?

[@alancarr4272]

Check out the works of James Dewar!

[@davidjohannsen9545]

@@alancarr4272 Perfect, sir.

[@_tyrannus]

Detonating a nuclear reactor in space to produce "small, harmless particles" sounds like quite the terrible idea, in hindsight.

[@bobjoatmon1993]

Why? The particles would rapidly spread out into the vastness of space and within a short period of time it probably would take great effort to find and capture any. Plus the solar wind would be pushing the small particles outward so I question how many might be swept up by a planets gravitational field. Finally, the half life for the fission products isn't that long in a historical context. So it seems like a fairly safe disposal method because it would be rare, not something hundreds of reactors would have hapoen all in one place.

[@_tyrannus]

You don't exactly want millions of little pieces of metal flying around commonly used orbits. Besides, a lot of them, including fuel and decay elements, would end up reentering and dispersing into the atmosphere.

[@bobjoatmon1993]

@@_tyrannus have you LOOKED at what's already in Earth orbit? Lots of trash up there, big chunks from Chinese and Russian asat tests beyond just the carelessness of every country on spent boosters blowing up. A Kessler Syndrome could happen at any time, especially with 30k of new internet sstilites which are going up now Besides, destroying a nuclear engine would be a rare event, not a normal thing. Most, if ever actually built would just be parked in a graveyard orbit.

[@teresashinkansen9402]

@@bobjoatmon1993 It was actually an dual purpose test. They wanted to see how viable would be to use such reactor as a weapon to damage or destroy incoming nuclear weapons or satellites with the burst of neutrons and gamma rays.

[@bobjoatmon1993]

@@teresashinkansen9402 sorry this theory doesn't pass the Occam's Razor test. Basically, it's too wasteful to use an expensive engine, when a cheaper enhanced radiation warhead would do. If you have some proof for your theory I'd love to hear it because I'm always open to new information.

[@masscomnet]

Man, I love Star Trek the Original Series too.

[@jsieb]

Testing was done at the "Jackass Flats".... TIL

[@rocketsocks]

10,000 megawatt-seconds is 10 gigajoules, or 2.4 tons of TNT in explosive "yield".

[@teresashinkansen9402]

Imagine how intense the radiation must have to be that air glow is visible at sunlight conditions. I wonder, if someone was besides that reactor how bright their vitreous humor would glow. I also wonder about how much of that glow was directly caused by gamma rays and how much of it was due neutrons.

[@BemilyAndBoomer]

Hey, I watched this!

[@spacewave6667]

Something about the rods rotating very fast?

[@phdnk]

Does project's Rover "Kiwi TNT" test qualify as a nuclear explosion despite the device not being a nuclear weapon?

[@pseudotasuki]

I believe so. It was a bit like an intentional fizzle.

[@phdnk]

@@pseudotasuki this is an awkward thing to acknowledge: The test was conducted after the partial test ban treaty. This becomes an example that a nuclear reactor can in principle explode in a nuclear explosion however small and frizzly it is.

[@AlexanderSchreiber]

@@phdnk Although the test description provided implies that the test article had been modified to "prod it along" on the way to the KABOOM a little.

[@vancouverguy2533]

just in time for todays anniversary. where did you get this?

[@alancarr4272]

From the LANL National Security Research Center

[@frankherrick1892]

Was this in Simi Valley, California ?

[@vancouverguy2533]

Area 25, Nevada Test Site

[@creed4022]

Jackass Flats testing area, Nevada.

[@JustinAlexanderBell]

16:53

[@bobjoatmon1993]

Fascinating I wonder just who this documentary was originally produced for? In other words, who was the audience for it? Not the general public but maybe to inform Congressmen and Senators and such?

[@Taskforce1]

it's a video report for the US Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and NASA 3:20

[@bobjoatmon1993]

@@Taskforce1 that's not what I'm asking. Read the question again, who would they SHOW it to back when it was produced and all such matters were classified? Not anyone of the public, not anyone in most government agencies, can't think of anyone in a foreign government would have been slowed to view it so who would have sat in a dark room and watched this FILM? Who was the target audience?

[@teresashinkansen9402]

It was for the reptilians. Government agencies are obliged to report the progress of technology handed down to humans. In other words, chairmen of agencies "people" who fake to lack deep technical knowledge of technology but with high authority to report to their superiors.