• menas@lemmy.wtf
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    5 days ago

    Research satellite need to be classified. What could go wrong ? I read somewhere that US classified weather satellite embedded ballistic missile. However, in checking sources I don’t find anything.

  • marcos@lemmy.world
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    6 days ago

    What can one even do with a cannon in LEO, where everything is moving at 25000 km/h?

    You are better making one on the ground and shooting up.

    • LastYearsIrritant@sopuli.xyz
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      6 days ago

      It’s all about relative velocity. If you have a good enough targeting system, a cannon in space is great. The air resistance is very minimal, so your range is really only limited by your targeting computer.

      That being said, the stuff in space mostly has thrusters and guidance to avoid obstacles, so you need to make sure there’s no time to adjust. Ideally, you’d need to fire a guided rocket to hit things so it can follow a dodging target.

      • marcos@lemmy.world
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        6 days ago

        A cannon has at most some 1000km/h of delta-V. If you can reach any target with that maneuver, it’s because you are lucky, and you won’t get another target.