Questions tagged [weapon-mass-destruction]

For questions that deal with weapons of mass destruction (WMD).

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Is it possible to intercept ICBMs? [closed]

Assuming the Russians and Chinese launch all their 400+ ICBMs at the continental United States, how many could the US intercept with present-day technology?"
user6760's user avatar
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6 votes
5 answers
1k views

How would wars be fought if everyone had a nuclear hand grenade?

Let's imagine that tomorrow we (well, only those 18 or older, so not me) all wake up and find a nuclear bomb next to our bedsides1. The bombs are about the sizes of hand grenades2 and are easy to ...
HDE 226868's user avatar
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15 votes
5 answers
5k views

Can I grow a banana that will produce mushroom cloud?

There is a trace of radioactive isotope of potassium found in every bananas, I'm curious can I grow a banana which is rich in heavier unstable elements so that I can harvest and threaten my neighbor? (...
user6760's user avatar
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4 votes
4 answers
1k views

How would Death Star move between systems?

Similar to the Death Star(s) depicted in Star Wars universe, my question is how do such a massive body move from its orbit around its parent planet across the stellar system or galaxy into the enemy's ...
user6760's user avatar
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10 votes
13 answers
3k views

Space Mechs or Tanks or Planes or Marines - Fighting in space without blowing up each other's starships

Suppose that there are 2 interstellar empires at war with one another, both armed with FTL drives which cannot be used within a certain radius of huge gravity fields, stars, gas giants, etc. Another ...
grimmsdottir's user avatar
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6 votes
13 answers
2k views

How could a civilization with approx. 18th-century technology weaponise mined nuclear materials?

In a nutshell, what are the pre-requisites for having sailing ships fire nuclear cannonballs? The setting is entirely alternate-universe, so the available material can be a lot more naturally "primed" ...
Nikolay Ershov's user avatar
2 votes
7 answers
19k views

How much antimatter would we need in order to wipe out all humans, eradicate all animals and blow up the Earth?

Supposing we had many thousands of antimatter bombs (they can be detonated in many different locations), how much total antimatter would we need in order to wipe out all humans on Earth? Supposing we ...
BuildingBetterWorlds's user avatar
11 votes
3 answers
9k views

What would be the outcome of a nuclear war between India and Pakistan?

As I asked in Previous Question about the role of countries in the conflict between India and Pakistan and most of the answers suggest that there is less chance of involvement of other countries, I ...
Explorer's user avatar
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4 votes
4 answers
978 views

What will be the roles and strategies of big countries in the conflict between India and Pakistan? [closed]

Since the partition of British India in 1947 and creation of the modern republics of India and Pakistan, the two South Asian countries have been involved in four wars. Relations between India and ...
Explorer's user avatar
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6 votes
2 answers
587 views

The power of the Jupiter projectile

I recently re-watched an awesome show - Diebuster. At one point in the show, one of the characters uses Jupiter as a projectile, slamming it into one of the aliens, but to no avail. I can't find a ...
Feaurie Vladskovitz's user avatar
4 votes
3 answers
392 views

Planet-enshrouding weapons grid

Suppose an advanced society of humans (or, for that matter, any universal species) constructed a space-based weapon system designed to serve functions ranging from strategic air support to a doomsday ...
Frostfyre's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
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Using Neutron Bombs to destroy life in an area [closed]

A neutron bomb or officially known as one type of Enhanced Radiation Weapon is a low yield fission-fusion thermonuclear weapon (hydrogen bomb) in which the burst of neutrons generated by a fusion ...
user3082's user avatar
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9 votes
4 answers
4k views

How many deaths can be caused by a Coronal Mass Ejection (Solar Flare)?

Where should I shoot a solar flare that is at least as strong as the solar flare(s) in 2012 for the most death? What else would happen? And how much death, in percentage of world population, would the ...
Malady's user avatar
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7 votes
8 answers
2k views

How to make a world MAD

I have been reading about mutual assured destruction and deterrence theory on Wikipedia, and it got me thinking. What would it take for some of the countries in the world to actually destroy one ...
James Westman's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
745 views

Dyson Laser feasibility

A Dyson Laser would be a spherical swarm megastructure arrangement of robots focusing mirrors directing sunlight towards a particular planet in a system heating it with enough energy to melt it. This ...
Sam Washburn's user avatar
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25 votes
1 answer
1k views

Reformatting Death Stars as powerful telescopes

I think the Hubble telescope is too small to observe the universe. Ditto for James Webb, Keck and other telescopes out there. I decided I need something much bigger. So, I recently got two Death ...
Victor Stafusa - BozoNaCadeia's user avatar
22 votes
17 answers
6k views

Shooting an energy beam into the Sun (from the Earth) in order to destroy it

This question is about a fictional scenario where an evil suicidal scientist has built a high-energy weapon somewhere on earth. His intention is to shoot a beam of some form of energy (or high-energy ...
x457812's user avatar
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88 votes
30 answers
11k views

The opposite to Worldbuilding: World Destruction

I am looking at different ways to destroy a planet - because a society within my setting wants to destroy a planet. I am assuming the planet is of a similar size and composition to the Earth just to ...
Jimmery's user avatar
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29 votes
8 answers
4k views

Building the Death Star with today's tech

I found an interesting Wikipedia article, quoted in an answer here. I'm looking into writing a story where someone has built a Death Star. The purpose of this craft is important to the story (and the ...
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