Nuclear weapon: Difference between revisions
From Halopedia, the Halo wiki
Sith Venator (talk | contribs) |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 7: | Line 7: | ||
The UNSC uses nuclear weapons in space warfare to a great effect, increasing their explosive power by developing loads enhanced for vacuum use.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 35" ''page 326''</ref> Commonly, the casings of UNSC nuclear weapons such as the [[FENRIS nuclear warhead]]s are heavily reinforced, both to contain [[radiation]] and to boost the thermonuclear yield for containing the detonation for a split second longer.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 1", ''page 39''</ref> The hardened cases also protect the nukes inside and prevent them from going off accidentally - it was noted that detonating a bomb next to a FENRIS warhead would barely scratch the casing.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 23", ''page 209''</ref> There a various grades for the types of nuclear weapons. An example is the excavation-grade [[HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon]]. While presumably not as powerful as a military-grade weapon, a single warhead is described as being powerful enough to turn [[Ivanoff Station]] "into piñata" and was powerful enough to destroy ''[[Mantle's Approach]]'' and the [[Composer]] when detonated on the inside of the ship. | The UNSC uses nuclear weapons in space warfare to a great effect, increasing their explosive power by developing loads enhanced for vacuum use.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 35" ''page 326''</ref> Commonly, the casings of UNSC nuclear weapons such as the [[FENRIS nuclear warhead]]s are heavily reinforced, both to contain [[radiation]] and to boost the thermonuclear yield for containing the detonation for a split second longer.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 1", ''page 39''</ref> The hardened cases also protect the nukes inside and prevent them from going off accidentally - it was noted that detonating a bomb next to a FENRIS warhead would barely scratch the casing.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 23", ''page 209''</ref> There a various grades for the types of nuclear weapons. An example is the excavation-grade [[HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon]]. While presumably not as powerful as a military-grade weapon, a single warhead is described as being powerful enough to turn [[Ivanoff Station]] "into piñata" and was powerful enough to destroy ''[[Mantle's Approach]]'' and the [[Composer]] when detonated on the inside of the ship. | ||
Nuclear weapons are also sold commercially, and are commonly used in [[asteroid]] mining. In [[2513]], an Insurrectionist suicide bomber used one such commercial explosive in a terrorist attack on the [[Haven arcology]] on [[Mamore]], killing two million and injuring over eight million more.<ref>'''[[Intersystem News]]''': ''HAVEN TERROR BOMBING KILLS TWO MILLION''</ref> | Nuclear weapons are also sold commercially, and are commonly used in [[asteroid]] mining. In [[2513]], an Insurrectionist suicide bomber used one such commercial explosive in a [[terrorism|terrorist]] attack on the [[Haven arcology]] on [[Mamore]], killing two million and injuring over eight million more.<ref>'''[[Intersystem News]]''': ''HAVEN TERROR BOMBING KILLS TWO MILLION''</ref> | ||
An operational idiosyncrasy of nuclear weapons is the result of containing fissile material. Fissile materials, such as [[plutonium]], emit a readily detectable [[Čerenkov radiation]] signature upon exiting [[slipspace]] that negates stealth measures. As a result, if complete stealth is required, [[UNSC prowler|prowlers]] are forced to jettison any on-board nuclear weapons before transitioning back to normal space to avoid detection.<ref name="goo187">'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 22", ''page 187''</ref> In addition, nukes launched from slipspace can easily be detected by enemy sensors, despite the use of [[Stealth ablative coating|stealth coatings]] or [[lead]] linings.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Prologue", ''page 15''</ref> | An operational idiosyncrasy of nuclear weapons is the result of containing fissile material. Fissile materials, such as [[plutonium]], emit a readily detectable [[Čerenkov radiation]] signature upon exiting [[slipspace]] that negates stealth measures. As a result, if complete stealth is required, [[UNSC prowler|prowlers]] are forced to jettison any on-board nuclear weapons before transitioning back to normal space to avoid detection.<ref name="goo187">'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 22", ''page 187''</ref> In addition, nukes launched from slipspace can easily be detected by enemy sensors, despite the use of [[Stealth ablative coating|stealth coatings]] or [[lead]] linings.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Prologue", ''page 15''</ref> | ||
The [[energy shielding]] used in [[Covenant]] warships has been noted to dampen the | The [[energy shielding]] used in [[Covenant]] warships has been noted to dampen the [[electromagnetic pulse]] generated by the detonation of a nuke inside the ship. The [[SPARTAN-II program|SPARTAN-IIs]] used this to their advantage when they destroyed a [[Covenant cruiser at Longhorn Valley|Covenant cruiser]] during the [[Fall of Reach]], without risking damaging the nearby [[orbital defense generator]]s.<ref>'''Halo: First Strike''', "Chapter 3", ''page 25''</ref> | ||
==History== | ==History== | ||
The first space-borne nuclear weapons were used during the [[Interplanetary War]] in the 22nd century.<ref>'''Halo 4: The Essential Visual Guide''', ''page 74''</ref> However, they were not considered a viable weapon of space warfare for the next several hundred years; at the time of the start of the [[Insurrection]] in [[2494]] it was widely believed that fissile detonations in space were practically useless, as the vacuum of space severely reduces the explosive yield and the resulting [[electromagnetic pulse]]. As such, it came as a surprise to the UNSC when the [[Insurrectionist]]s used a nuclear device in a space battle following the [[Callisto Incident|''Callisto'' Incident]], having hidden it in an [[asteroid]] in advance. When detonated, the nuke shattered the asteroid to molten pieces, which in turn destroyed one UNSC ship and severely damaged two.<ref>'''Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe''', "The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole", ''page 445''</ref> | The first space-borne nuclear weapons were used during the [[Interplanetary War]] in the 22nd century.<ref>'''Halo 4: The Essential Visual Guide''', ''page 74''</ref> However, they were not considered a viable weapon of space warfare for the next several hundred years; at the time of the start of the [[Insurrection]] in [[2494]] it was widely believed that fissile detonations in space were practically useless, as the vacuum of space severely reduces the explosive yield and the resulting [[electromagnetic pulse]]. As such, it came as a surprise to the UNSC when the [[Insurrectionist]]s used a nuclear device in a space battle following the [[Callisto Incident|''Callisto'' Incident]], having hidden it in an [[asteroid]] in advance. When detonated, the nuke shattered the asteroid to molten pieces, which in turn destroyed one UNSC ship and severely damaged two.<ref>'''Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe''', "The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole", ''page 445''</ref> | ||
Engagements against the [[Covenant]] during the [[Human-Covenant War]] constantly kept the UNSC's nuclear stockpiles near depletion. This occasionally forced them to resort to using obsolete nukes or [[Operation: UPPER CUT|unorthodox solutions]].<ref name="goo34">'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 1", ''page 34''</ref><ref name="goo205">'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 23", ''page 205''</ref><ref>'''Halo: Reach''', campaign level ''[[Long Night of Solace]]''</ref> The Covenant did not generally use nuclear weapons, regarding them as "heretic" weapons. An exception to this were the [[Jiralhanae]], who had no qualms about using captured UNSC nukes or any other UNSC matériel.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 23", ''page 207''</ref><ref>'''[[Halo 2]]''', campaign level ''[[Uprising]]''</ref> | Engagements against the [[Covenant]] during the [[Human-Covenant War]] constantly kept the UNSC's nuclear stockpiles near depletion. This occasionally forced them to resort to using obsolete nukes or [[Operation: UPPER CUT|unorthodox solutions]].<ref name="goo34">'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 1", ''page 34''</ref><ref name="goo205">'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 23", ''page 205''</ref><ref>'''Halo: Reach''', campaign level ''[[Long Night of Solace]]''</ref> | ||
The Covenant did not generally use nuclear weapons, regarding them as "heretic" weapons. An exception to this were the [[Jiralhanae]], who had no qualms about using captured UNSC nukes or any other UNSC matériel.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', "Chapter 23", ''page 207''</ref><ref>'''[[Halo 2]]''', campaign level ''[[Uprising]]''</ref> However, following the end of the war, [[Covenant remnant|remnant groups]] of the Covenant have adopted more liberal policies in regards to human weaponry for practical reasons. Human-made nuclear weapons have subsequently fallen into the hands of Covenant [[terrorism|terrorists]] and cultists.<ref>'''Spartan Ops''', ''[[Departure]]''</ref> | |||
==UNSC nuclear ordnance== | ==UNSC nuclear ordnance== | ||
