I'd have thought that too (re: dampers), yet an application of that technology (not dampers as such) has allowed the thruster plates (successor to artificial/anti-gravity of early space tech levels) to exert thrust without a gravity well. I was thinking maybe you could use that sort of aspect of damping which seems more focused to controlling energy in useful ways.



On Mon, May 11, 2020 at 9:16 PM Richard Aiken <xxxxxx@gmail.com> wrote:
On Mon, May 11, 2020 at 1:43 PM <xxxxxx@gmail.com> wrote:
Two questions:

Does the spherical blast cavity change shape if there are disparate rock densities like there would be many places on Earth?

I don't think the overall shape would change (and it's cylindrical rather than spherical). Differences in rock density are trivial compared to the force being exerted. Density differences would likely cause the uppermost crust of the molten layer to be composed of the lighter sort of rock . . . which is good, since it's the denser rock that would hold the most radioactivity.


In Traveller, if you had the tech, couldn't you use nukes in conjunction with dampers aligned to sculpt the cavity shape?

IIRC, dampers don't work that way. They affect whether or not the explosion happens and can stop radioactive decay while engaged. They have no control over the progress of an actual nuclear explosion, which is a macro rather than a micro event.

--
Richard Aiken

"Never insult anyone by accident."  Robert A. Heinlein
"I studied the Koran a great deal. I came away from that study with the conviction there have been few religions in the world as deadly to men as Muhammed." Alexis de Tocqueville
"We know a little about a lot of things; just enough to make us dangerous." Dean Winchester (fictional monster hunter portrayed by Jensen Ackles)
"It has been my experience that a gun doesn't care who pulls its trigger." Newton Knight (as portrayed by Matthew McConaughey), to a scoffing Confederate tax collector facing the weapons held by Knight's young children and wife.

-----
The Traveller Mailing List
Archives at http://archives.simplelists.com/tml
Report problems to xxxxxx@simplelists.com
To unsubscribe from this list please go to
http://www.simplelists.com/confirm.php?u=RDHE7iRpfwqlHvVvWBIhpJZsbTiD5NnL