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• 1 2021-04-16T04:31:16+00:00 Nuclear Ramjets: What are they? 18 plain 2021-05-20T21:46:14+00:00 36.802961420195984, -116.31355209632
  Project Pluto tested two nuclear ramjet engines Tory II A and Tory II C. Ramjets are a type of engine which use their immense speed to pressurize air coming into the inlet of their engines. In the case of this vehicle, the air entering the inlet would already be an astounding 1000 °F, just from friction caused by how fast the vehcle would be traveling. This air would then be heated to 2000 °F by the heat of the reactor, which it essentially passed directly through. Because the ramjets needed high speed to operate, the SLAM would be accelerated initially by rockets.
  
  
  
  Tory II-C was tested by forcing 1.2 million pounds of air through the engine aperture at 943 degrees Fahrenheit and 316 psi. This simulated the operating conditions of the engine in flight. These tests were conducted at Jackass Flats, at the Nevada Test Station by Lawrence Radiation Laboratory.
  
  
  This testing program was considered just as great an achievement as 
  
  I've attached a link to a PDF from the program written by the head, Ted Merkle, assessing the capability of nuclear propulsion.