LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Nuclear Pulse Propulsion
built 672 days ago
This scheme for space travel, more formally called Nuclear Pulse Propulsion, was first proposed by Stanislaw Ulam and Cornelius Everett in a classified 1955 paper. According to lore, Ulam was inspired by an experiment that involved suspending two graphite-covered steel spheres about thirty feet from ground zero of an atomic explosion. The spheres were later found fully intact miles away, with only a thin layer of graphite vaporized away by the explosion.
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The nuclear pulse drive was conceived of H-bomb designers Stanislaw Ulam and Cornelius Everett at Los Alamos in 1955. Ted Taylor at Los Alamos further developed the concept. By the winter of 1957 Turner was working at General Atomics after developing the Triga small research reactor design with Freeman Dyson. Dyson managed to take a one-year sabbatical from his post at Princeton in order to work with Taylor on development of the nuclear pulse design at Los Alamos in 1958.
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Does it make any sense to even think of reviving the nuclear-pulse concept? Economically the answer is yes. Pedersen (55) says that 10,000-ton spaceships with 10,000-ton payloads are feasible. Spaceships like this could be relatively cheap compared to Shuttle-like vehicles due to their heavyweight construction. One tends to think of shipyards with heavy plates being lowered into place by cranes. How much would the pulse units cost?
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The bulbous thing on the next page is one of the "nuclear pulse" propulsion types. The spherical part would be filled with thin gas, and a very small atomic bomb would be detonated inside. This would heat the gas, which would shoot out the rear creating thrust.
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Electromagnetic Pulse is the affect of nuclear weapons that has a tendency to destroy electronics in a large area. It is caused by radiation ionizing the atoms in a band around the earth approximately 20-30 km high. It can be extremely damaging.
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Much of the work involved in reinforcing the space colony and attaching the nuclear pulse propulsion system was performed by Zakus. During this process, the Zakus carried giant tanks of coolant and rocket fuel on their backs to extend their operating time. Their mobility was greatly reduced as a result, and during the second colony drop operation, many excellent pilots were lost as their Zakus were shot down while performing this engineering work.
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Nuclear Pulse Propulsion