Post #2772960
2026-05-13 18:52 UTC
@robinhouston@mathstodon.xyz @christianp@mathstodon.xyz I'm gonna respond explicitly here in case anybody wants to refer back to this in the future:
The point is not simply to dispose of them: the point is to reduce them to their constituent particles through nuclear incineration; the only reason to care about the transport energy costs is if one finds oneself in the unfortunate position of having only enough budget for the cheaper of the two options 😜.
Replies (1)
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@Meyerweb@mastodon.social 2026-05-13 20:29
@robinhouston@mathstodon.xyz @christianp@mathstodon.xyz @eigen@mattstodon.panar.ooo Still, it pays to be efficient! We could slam them into the Moon fast enough for effective vaporization for less dV than it takes to yeet them into the Sun. Or, loft them around the Moon and bring them back on a high-energy atmospheric entry that would reduce them to vapor, especially if we save weight by removing the heat shield.