Alex WellersteinVerified account

I don't recall seeing any explanation of why they used WC in LB instead of U, though they also studied U. My guess (half-memory?) is that they were worried about excess neutrons in the core causing predetonation possibilities. U has a real background neutron rate, WC does not.

So I have a declassed doc on this in which that sentence is redacted but it’s obviously what is said re: neutrons from natrl U. Let me get out of class and I will send.

https://twitter.com/nuclearanthro/status/935011250811035649?s=21 … It’s from one of the glasstone classed docs on nukes. Will get full citation later.

So much math in nuclear physics If only it was easier to calculate Z in my back yard breeder reactor shielding. Half of that statement is true I hate math and skipped half of Glasstone because it was using Greek symbols

The only word I understood was conference

Going back to Nat or DU tamper/reflector for gun bombs - avoiding predetonation in gun weapons simplifies as a game of removing U-238 from the system. A U-238 tamper is obviously counterproductive...