generalspeaking

 Vladimir Putin, Overreaching Himself

“The Russian Federation continues to implement measures to strengthen its military security,” a statement from the Russian Ministry of Defence reads. “The creation of new strategic weapons systems is aimed at enhancing the defence capability of Russia, and preventing any aggression against our country and its allies.” March 2018

"[The purpose of developing a nuclear-powered missile is to achieve an unlimited range]. This also, in theory, frees you up from the constraint of the amount of fuel that you can carry."
“With unlimited range, you can make major detours to strike the enemy in exposed zones, use trajectories that are not under surveillance and thwart and surprise American radar and their anti-missile defenses."
"They fear that the Americans one day will have a capacity to neutralize their arsenal using offensive and defensive means."
"Russia is multiplying its options to be certain to be able to penetrate American missile defense systems." 
"[Developing a nuclear-powered missile is] extremely complicated [for the sake of a] very dubious operational interest."
"The number of technical challenges that are needed to scale down a nuclear reactor to such a size and the constraints on tests are enormous."
"If you put together the technical challenges, the political, environmental consequences and the operational interest you end up with a very negative equation."
"There is the aspect of nationalistic posturing which is extremely important. Putin wants to show that Russia is developing systems that the US does not have and that it is sustaining a technological competition."
Corentin Brustlein, head, security studies, French Institute of International Relations (IFRI).

An explosion on August 8 at the Nenoksa Missile Test Site near Severodvinsk, Russia. (YouTube screenshot)

"[The institute was working on] sources of thermal or electric energy using radioactive materials, including fissile materials and radioisotype materials."
"These developments are also actually happening in many countries. The Americans last year ... also tested a small-scale reactor."
Our centre also continues to work in this direction."
Vyacheslaw Solovyev, official, Sarov Scientists' Research Institute

In this grab taken from a footage provided by the Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation ROSATOM press service, a Russian military band prepare to attend the funerals of five Russian nuclear engineers killed by a rocket explosion in Sarov, the closed city, located 370 kilometers (230 miles) east of Moscow, which has served as a base for Russia’s nuclear weapons program since the late 1940s, Russia, Monday, Aug. 12, 2019. (Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation ROSATOM via AP)

Sarov, some 400 km east of Moscow, is the site of a secret, heavily guarded military research institute, where innovative new advanced technology weaponry is designed and tested. The world sat up and took notice a few days ago when scientists in Norway alerted that they had detected a rise in radioactivity in the atmosphere, emanating from the area. Moscow denied any such thing. The Kremlin was tight-lipped in its denials.

Soon enough it was revealed that five of Russia's elite nuclear scientists were dead, victims of an ambitious project being tested that went very, very awry. And although the Russian defence ministry had stated that the detected background radiation was normal, U.S.based nuclear experts advanced the theory that a failed test involving a nuclear-powered cruise missile had backfired during testing of the Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile.

BUREVESTNIK: It's touted to be a cruise missile given unlimited global reach because of a revolutionary new nuclear-powered engine. There are, however, doubts it actually works. Nevertheless, Moscow remains upbeat: “A low-flying, barely noticeable cruise missile carrying a nuclear warhead with virtually unlimited range, unpredictable flight trajectory and the possibility of circumvention of interception lines is invulnerable to all existing and prospective systems of both missile defence and air defence”. It says design and development work is continuing."

That would be one of the new, advanced pieces of military equipment that Russian President Vladimir Putin had introduced to the world stage in 2018, crowing that Russian ingenuity, engineering and design prowess knew no equal, and that Russia invested in these designs, producing formidable new weaponry as an assurance it could successfully oppose any threats that might come in its direction from an aggressive United States, then under the presidency of Barack Obama.

The botched missile test did deliver a very solemn funeral oration, where Russia's top nuclear authority issued a stern promise that the development of new weapons will proceed on schedule. And then the five scientists mourned as heroes to their nation were buried close to where they died, in the city of Sarov, days after the Russian nuclear agency Rosatom announced an accident that took place on a sea platform off northern Russia during a rocket test.

Michael Klimentyev / Sputnik  via AP    Russian President Vladimir Putin stands in front of a huge Russian flag emblazoned with the country's crest ahead of his speech on March 1, 2018.

The Sarov city administration announced two days of mourning for the scientists who died nobly, "performing a task of national importance". A year of careful work had gone into the design, production and planning of the tests, according to Valentin Kostyukov, head of the nuclear centre, part of Rosatom. A state commission has been instructed to investigate the malfunctioning incident and render a definitive report.

One can imagine the panic that resulted when it became apparent to the technical science team that something was going dreadfully wrong with the test as they desperately attempted to control the situation. In the end, the accident would not allow itself to be prevented, and the dreadful consequences of such an unforgiving explosive medium taking control of the situation took the very lives that strove to prevent it.

It hardly seems that such a catastrophe would not have been foreseen as a possibility. That rocket fuel caught fire during the test causing the violent detonation and the dreadful loss of life. Before the test was to take place, villagers living nearby had been ordered to temporarily evacuate. Some of the villagers chose to make themselves scarce, going off into nearby forests for the day. Local residents  acquired iodine, familiarly used on the occasion of radiation exposure to reduce its effects.

Labels: Advanced Weaponry, Explosions, Nuclear Miniaturization, Russia, Vladimir Putin

posted by Pieface @ Thursday, August 15, 2019