It is no secret that the development of Chinese defense equipment is oriented to the Soviet Union and Russia. And most recently, even beyond analysts' expectations, is China's obsession with producing nuclear-powered torpedoes.
Similar to the Poseidon torpedo which is now a strategic weapon of the Russian Navy, the Chinese nuclear torpedo can reach targets as far as 10,000 km. However, there are significant differences between the Russian Poseidon torpedo and the Chinese-designed nuclear torpedo.
Quoted from the South China Morning Post – scmp.com (20/7/2022), Chinese researchers in Beijing claim to have designed a small and inexpensive version of the Russian Poseidon underwater torpedo/drone that can cross the Pacific in a week.
Uniquely, this Chinese designed deadly torpedo uses a disposable (disposable) nuclear reactor. Unlike the Poseidon, this Chinese torpedo even carries power from a nuclear reactor, but the warhead is conventional.
The adoption of conventional warheads, is intended not to trigger nuclear war. Unlike the Poseidon torpedo which carries a nuclear warhead. According to Russian media reports, the Poseidon nuclear warhead is up to two megatons, which is 100 times more powerful than the Hiroshima bomb, which could theoretically destroy a coastal city or a larger area in the continental United States.
In terms of dimensions, China's nuclear-powered torpedo will adopt the conventional (533 mm) torpedo standard. Which means this nuclear-powered torpedo can be launched from the tube of a submarine, be it a nuclear or diesel electric submarine. As for the Poseidon, it is said to have dimensions and weights like a mini submarine.
The dimensions of the Poseidon cannot be equated with the figure of a conventional torpedo, where the length of the Poseidon reaches 24 meters with a diameter of 1.6 – 2 meters. For this reason, the Poseidon cannot be carried by any submarine, where the Poseidon can only be launched by the Belgorod nuclear submarine.
The Chinese nuclear-powered torpedo is prepared to reach and maintain a cruising speed of over 30 knots (56 km per hour) for 200 hours before dumping the reactor to the seabed and drawing power from the battery to launch in conventional attack mode.
Chinese researchers say if these torpedoes can be launched in large numbers. Apart from being launched from a submarine, this torpedo can also be launched from a surface ship.
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