Q&A ยท 2:17:15-2:17:46

Why the Cudgel atomic mine proposal died

A floating nuclear mine created an unacceptable risk that the weapon would drift beyond control.

Question

What killed the Cudgel naval atomic-mine proposal?

Short answer

Navies and politicians did not want an uncontrolled nuclear weapon able to drift around the world's oceans.

Notes

The project's central flaw is loss of control. An atomic weapon in the maritime environment can move with the conditions and become difficult to recover or command. Its destructive yield makes the ordinary uncertainty of mine warfare intolerable.