A Reminder of What Might Have Been

[stickmaker]

Orion concept test vehicle, at the National Air and Space Museum:

http://www.nasm.si.edu/collections/artifact.cfm?id=A19721008000

Comments

[gavinfox.livejournal.com]

Wouldn't the Orion have caused lots of radiation problems for the crew?

[stickmaker.livejournal.com]

No. Besides the fact that the nuclear pulse units were low yield and specifically designed for propulsion rather than radiation, there were both the pusher plate and radiation shielding around the crew module between them and the explosions.

They were more in danger from natural radiation in space than that from the propulsion units. Given the huge payload of an Orion, they were planning on a lot of shielding anyway, just on general principles.

[clemtaur.livejournal.com]

..And it would have been a good use of the World's nuclear stockpiles. Mars colony, anyone?