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Zebo1013 t1_iz7nhov wrote

What would happen if these became unstable mid launch?????

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thejml2000 t1_iz7pt2i wrote

Depends on the volume. Generally, about the same as any of the RTG’s we’ve launched on NASA or ESA probes. Not much. It burns up and distributes in the atmosphere to almost nothing in a wide swath. But again it really depends on the volume and when the malfunction happens.

There was a huge uproar during the Cassini–Huygens probe launch and NASA studies because of it.

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ingenix1 t1_iza7l54 wrote

Radioactive batteries have been in use since the 60s. I'm pretty sure the safety of using them has been figured out.

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