• CriticalResist8@lemmygrad.mlOPM
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    2 years ago

    China has hypersonic ICBMS, which means they could technically counter US nukes. Whether they could actually achieve that (there’s ways to overcome these defences) is another thing, but certainly I’d expect that the nukes would be struck down somewhere over the Pacific.

    I take it that nukes these days are made so that a specific process has to happen for the reaction to trigger, they can’t just detonate from being hit mid-air.

    • PolandIsAStateOfMind@lemmygrad.ml
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      2 years ago

      China has hypersonic ICBMS, which means they could technically counter US nukes

      Yeah, USA admitted even the DPRK currently owned ICBM’s would be enough to reach and overwhelm their west coast defenses, and China have more and better ones, though the exact amount is unknown.

      I’d expect that the nukes would be struck down somewhere over the Pacific.

      Not really, no country have ability to nullify full or even partial scale nuclear deployment. It would stop some, but for example USA currently have 400 land and 280 sea based ICBM’s, each with multiple warheads. Not counting tons of shorter ranged missiles.

      I take it that nukes these days are made so that a specific process has to happen for the reaction to trigger, they can’t just detonate from being hit mid-air.

      Yes, afaik it isn’t completely impossible to detonate nuke mid air with hit from defense weapon, but the probability is extremely small.