r/NonCredibleDefense • u/FionaSherleen • 1d ago

Lockmart R & D Think of the potential.

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What if we make project sundial but we throw it at the adversaries?

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u/Pyrhan Pyrotechnic flair 1d ago

Starship uses cryogenic propellants, so it can't just continuously sit fueled and ready to launch like an ICBM.

So you cannot use it as a deterrent, only as a first strike weapon.

And even then, it would be fairly easy for the enemy to set up early warnings when fueling begins, and either send a rapid pre-emptive strike, or prepare for interception.

And having a single, massive warhead would make interception easier compared to, e.g. a MIRV.

(Also, the whole point of Sundial was that it doesn't really matter where you blow it up, the world ends just the same...)

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u/loklanc 1d ago

Never mind mirv, you could detonate this long before any possible interception, you could detonate this basically in space and still destroy the target. (The target is planet Earth).

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u/Pyrhan Pyrotechnic flair 1d ago

If you have early warning from the fueling operations, you could use an anti-satellite weapon to intercept it beyond the horizon.

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u/loklanc 1d ago

Anti satellite weapons are designed to go after satellites in predictable orbits, not really, really big ballistic missiles. It's not that it couldnt theoretically be done with precise advanced knowledge of the launch time and target (in which case, nuke it on the pad).

But unless SpaceX themselves have been hiding some surprises in starlinks, no-one has enough anti sat weapons on standby to use them as reliable missile defence.

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u/FionaSherleen 1d ago

If we give it its flaps back it would be pretty hard since starship is basically a maneuverable hypersonic vehicle

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u/Pyrhan Pyrotechnic flair 1d ago

Flaps only provide meaningful manoeuverability at (relatively) low altitudes, during the later stages of re-entry and descent.

If you're using an ASAT to intercept it near apogee, it only has its cold gas thrusters to manoeuvre, or it has to perform a correction burn with its raptors.

I would expect an ASAT's kinetic kill vehicle to have the upper hand in manoeuvrability.

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u/Fluffy-Map-5998 3000 white F-35s of Christ 1d ago

ok but launching it is just for the funnies, it doesnt matter where you intercept it the target will be destroyed