Project Pluto was a Cold War project to create a nuclear-powered missile that could fly at supersonic speeds at low altitudes. It was canceled due to improvements in radar technology and the ease of developing ICBMs. The missile would have used a 513 megawatt unshielded nuclear reactor to heat air and travel at Mach 3 at treetop level, emitting lethal radiation. It could have stayed in the air for months and had the highest power density of any military hardware at the time. While a military pursuit, it highlights the power of nuclear propulsion for general aeronautical or astronautical applications.
Project Pluto was a SLAM, or supersonic low-altitude missile, a daring Cold War project designed to make a nuclear-powered under-the-radar ballistic missile. The research was conducted by scientists at the Lawrence Radiation Laboratory, predecessor of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, while testing took place at the Nevada Test Site, where most nuclear testing took place during the era. The project ran from 1957 to 1964. It was canceled when improvements in radar technology made its low-flying qualities obsolete, and ICBM technology proved easier to develop than anticipated.
The signature component of Project Pluto was a 513 megawatt unshielded nuclear reactor that heated air drawn in from the front of the missile and fired from the rear. This arrangement is called a ramjet or air-breathing missile. The Pluto missile was designed to travel at Mach 3 at treetop level. Its nuclear reactor would have emitted lethal radiation over a large radius. It was designed to be a missile bomber, capable of dropping multiple nuclear warheads as it traveled its path of destruction. We should all be thankful that Project Pluto was never completed.
Project Pluto, had the device actually been built, it likely would have been the aircraft that experienced the most in-flight stress of any airframe outside of spacecraft or ballistic missiles that re-enter the atmosphere. The reactor operated at 2,500°F (1,600°C), temperatures at which conventional materials would melt within minutes. Instead, special ceramics were used for the reactor components. Due to the efficiency of its nuclear drive, the Project Pluto missile could have stayed in the air for months if necessary, circling the Pacific until ordered to strike a target. The missile may have had the highest power density of any military hardware at the time, packing half a gigawatt of power into a package the size of a railroad car.
While Project Pluto was a military pursuit, it emphasizes the power of nuclear propulsion for general aeronautical or astronautical applications. When it comes to using conventional chemicals to fuel planes or rockets, there’s no comparison. Nuclear power provides more power for fractions of a cent on the dollar than chemical combustion. If the safety challenges surrounding nuclear reactors can be resolved, their use could open up the skies – and space – for the long-term future.
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