bumguts
102803
2234
80
Not OC. The only thing I can draw is conclusions and even then those come out poor.
Dark0Strike
I feel like I should save that last panel for later use.
itsmuaaz
Hitmarker*
FluorideUraniumCarbonPotassium
"For this shot you'll need to take the Coriolis effect into account"
DracidWasTaken
Houston, we have a problem. THIS MOFO IS L33TZ HAXORS
Luminade
Anyone else remember the time this was posted and every comment was just "Sick."?
wutnold124
THINK OF THE ORBITAL MECHANICS INVOLVED
Pumuchei
...mission failed. That's a hornet nest.
joenumbers
and also getting knocked off the moon from the recoil caused by hurling such a projectile...
Himitsubu
Who's the artist tho?
slimdegsy
xbolt
GoliathSkittles
Ya'll forgetting the part where he kicked the door off the lunar lander and now won't be able to get back to earth.
Talmorean
Fucking Aim Bots
Lasaagna
Is no one going to comment on the caption in the description? That won the upvote from me.
bumguts
<3
Lasaagna
Ɛ>
sippinonorphantears
lmaoooo "DUUUUUUUUDE"
CarisaSparks
Hun, I saw this and laughed because J had just told me the twig story!
okienotfrommuskogee
Haha!
thefanaticals
Like, the comic was good, but that caption...that was brilliant.
bumguts
<3
etudesque
+1 for the caption
LOlMyNameIs
You would need a bullet large and dense enough to compensate for reentry, and a gun that doesn't use gunpowder, since oxygen is a reactant.
DirectorBright
Smokeless powder used in modern bullets contains its own oxidizer... How do you think it burns? The bullets are sealed.
NoodleDriver
Old ass blackpowder has it's own oxidizer as well. Saltpeter (KNO^3: Potassium Nitrate) is a common oxidizer used in many boom things.
LOlMyNameIs
You would still need some oxygen for the firing pin to be able to ignite the powder. Which I guess could work?
DirectorBright
No I mean the powder itself, inside the bullet, it has its own oxidizer. That is, the powder burns without oxygen because it has it in it.
DystopianReality
Designing a bullet-sized projectile that could survive atmospheric reentry would likely be the main hurdle, apart from hitting the target.
Thekingofbeans
Why would it burn up? It's not like it will be moving at the speed of a meteor. It would just hit terminal velocity.
slicingupeyeballs
lambda18
Yes, As space would infinitely keep the bullet moving as it would burn up in the atmosphere. You would also have to aim JUSSSSTTTT right.
DoctorPitt
It just needs to be made out of something that can with stand the heat and force right?
DystopianReality
Yes, so that pretty much rules out lead/copper conventional bullets. And ceramic coatings could be problematic during firing.
firepower412
Need a sniper caliber discarding sabot round. Ceramic heat shields for reentry that discard afterwards, revealing a bullet.
firepower412
Need a sniper caliber discarding sabot round. Ceramic heat shields for reentry that discard afterwards, revealing a bullet.
filben7
Im assuming using solid tungsten would do it, and use a very large rifle like a .50cal BMG.
Gruntingsince1775
Eh...155
DystopianReality
Might still need an ablative shield of some sort. I'm tempted to send this one to: https://what-if.xkcd.com/
tomatoboy
Send it. I kinda want to see how the math comes out on adjusting for planetary motion, reentry, etc...
Rivalyn
Lunar escape velocity is 2.38 km/s, and that round has a velocity just shy of 1 km/s.
filben7
Thats in air, what about in a vacuum? And either way, bigger gun, those 20mm canons would probably do it.
Rivalyn
I sincerely doubt the lack of air is going to significantly speed up the initial velocity of the round. Also a 30mm round is about 990 m/s.
filben7
Never mind, the fastest bullet is under 5000feet/sec. No current gun on the market can break lunar escape velocity.
filben7
Never mind, the fastest bullet is under 5000feet/sec. No current gun on the market can break lunar escape velocity.
Talmorean
ROD FROM GOD. Google Kinetic Bombardment.
sippinonorphantears
dope
TheUglyGuy
Part of me wants to do the math to see if this is possible. Most of me is too lazy.
KimMakesStuff
brb messaging xkcd for a "what if"
TheBestThingOnCHIVEwheneverIFeelLikeIt
You would need to lead that like Ethiopia leads the pack!
TheUglyGuy
Calculating the lead for a roughly 2 day (44 hours) bullet flight would be a trick, fer sure.
bajeezus
Wouldn't chaos theory prohibit this much accuracy? Big rifle, computer targeting, yeah...but a single pocket of wind would put it off target
TheUglyGuy
I think we have a winner here. All the other technical issues can be overcome. The wind is just too unpredictable to sort out.
TheBestThingOnCHIVEwheneverIFeelLikeIt
You would need to lead that like Ethiopia leads the pack!
SuperCarnivorousPlant
Wasn't there another thread that talked about this
Demauscian
Lunar escape velocity is about 2.4 km/s and it would take a further ~1 km/s to deorbit from a lunar orbit. So as long as you can shoot at
TheUglyGuy
I think, if I read NASA's info correctly, EV is 1.4 with 2.4 to fully escape.
Demauscian
About 3.5 km/s directly retrograde to the moon's orbit the bullet could reach earth. Surviving reentry is another matter.
ItsJustCole
It's not
cheeseguy3412
Anything is possible, would just need to engineer a solution. Person probably couldnt, but a sufficiently specialized computer could.
jonathanaugle
No way something that small could keep together all the way to the surface
THEARTISTFORMERLYKNOWNASIMSALTYRICK
if you have one of the navy's new magnetically accelerated canon's maybe. but those things are huge. and it wouldn't just destroy the nest
MrDustey
Possible, but just not in the way the comic ahows. You'd need a rifle that could fire in space with a crazy acuracy 1/2
wabitgirl
Rocket bullet, self-propelled ballistic bullets. :D
TheUglyGuy
Fire in space is easy. Any gunpowder cartridge will do that.
ChimneyImps
If you interpret the statement literally, it isn't. The person specified a rifle, and no rifle has the necessary muzzle velocity.
TheUglyGuy
"Rifle" covers a pretty broad spectrum.
DavidRoland
bullet would burn up in atmosphere
imakedndreferencesatinappropriatetimes
I feel like maybe if we have technology to have casual moon visits for a hobby then we may have space weapons
Thekingofbeans
But guns are space weapons.
Dartmuthia
Nevermind the escape velocity and burning up in the atmosphere, it would still take days to reach earth.
Thekingofbeans
Why would it burn up in the atmosphere? It's not like it's going to speed up after being fired...
MacClay
Earth's gravity would continue to accelerate it after it passed from the Moon's influence to the Earth's.
Thekingofbeans
Not to any significant degree until it was relatively very close. Also a bullet is aerodynamic and made of metal.
MacClay
15 minutes of Google suggest it would reach around 11kps before entry and reach over 8k C, vaporizing both lead and copper.
TheUglyGuy
At 8,000 fps mv it would take about 44 hours to reach earth.
MrDustey
2/2 with a bullet that could survive passing through the atmosphere without being just melted
SuperCarnivorousPlant
Wasn't there another thread that talked about this
ErisAlicor
It would burn up on reentry unfortunately
Thekingofbeans
No it would not. Terminal velocity and all. meteors burn up because they are going WAY faster than a bullet.
UpvoteTotem
I'm betting there is a round that can be crafted, and usable in a handheld rifle. My guess is trajectory through entry would be impossible
UpvoteTotem
I'm betting there is a round that can be crafted, and usable in a handheld rifle. My guess is trajectory through entry would be impossible
bumguts
Not if you made it out of vibranium.
thrillhousevanho
When OP is right, OP is right.
thrillhousevanho
When OP is right, OP is right.
shooterl7
I'm 80% vibranium
DeathRazor213
Im 100% sadness
Krympehl
ehm, some of that vibranium is going to come off if not just burn up in the atmosphere itself. So you're going to have to account for that.
Krympehl
and in the case that you say it won't, then there's no feasible way to have forged the damn thing in the first place since it would...
Krympehl
... require an environment harsher than atmospheric re-entry, which would be neat but holy fuck what that be an awful place to work just...
TheUglyGuy
Would depend on the material you made the bullet from. Tungsten should work.
earlywormy
The air would hit it so hard it would be like a sand blaster on the tungsten
UpvoteTotem
How accurate could one shot vs another be though, considering friction, gravity, and planet spin? Even if perfect, the round would need luck
Dreigiau
Gravity and spin are constants and can be calculated. friction - wind and upper atmosphere conditions would fuck it even if you knew what1/2
Dreigiau
2/2 it was like at the wasp nest
TheMoistBandit
Find me a gun that can shoot 238,900 miles, then we can talk.
TheUglyGuy
Only has to reach escape velocity, the rest is inertia.
generalobiwancannoli
I don't think anyone could shoot a mile let alone 238900 of them
TheUglyGuy
Guns & Ammo mag built a gun and shot it a mile. Got 3 shots into an 8 inch circle. *At a fuckin' mile*
Mk1986
World record for a confirmed kill with a rifle is 2707 yards or 1.53 miles.
ImNotCreativeEnoughForAGoodUsername
Due to angle and gravity/air force not being a factor for most of that, the biggest issue would be re-entry
Kommadore
It ranges like that, it biggest factor becomes time, how do you aim at a moving, rotating target 240k miles away.
TheUglyGuy
Math.
WillingToListenAndLearnButNeverBlindlyAccept
Not to mention the mass amount of orbital debris
TheUglyGuy
For all the debris there is *way* more open space than debris.
Zaranthan
We're not anywhere near Kessler Syndrome yet.
ThatCouldPossiblyBeMyFetish
Biggest issue is whether it has the muzzle velocity to give the bullet an orbital perigee that's in the earths atmosphere
ThatCouldPossiblyBeMyFetish
Or even is able to achieve lunar escape velocity
ImNotCreativeEnoughForAGoodUsername
Shit I completely forgot about lunar escape velocity...
GiantRobotsRule
Impossible. Bullet would take so long to reach Earth, that the wasps would simply move their nest out of the way.
Thekingofbeans
So you're saying we need to find some stupid wasps...
DoctorDelta
Sounds like a job for @XKCD
MustafaSever
.
TheRealSpaghettiMonster
Nah. This is a myth that needs busting. @mistersavage
filthyhippy
Just submitted the question to him. My guess is he's going to turn it into a "Rods from God" type thing and liquefy a continent.
ProbablySatire
No oxygen on moon to fire that type of gun. See Firefly and Vera.
TheUglyGuy
No air needed for gunpowder - the nitrates serve as an oxidizer.
Gray808
That's.. just not how oxidation works.
TheUglyGuy
I'm no scientist, but they fire fine underwater, so....
chrispcreamdount
You can fire a rifle cartridge in a vacuum, you can not fire a shot gun shell in a vacuum due to it not sealing air inside itself.
Kommadore
Firefly is a great show, but not a good source for practical physics answers.
bumguts
Probable. Possible?
WackyWavingInflatableJessePinkman
"Probable... yes, though is it possible? We dont know." -Twenty One Pilots
saleenowner
I don't know who they are, but they just played in my city and cause a shit storm of traffic. That is all
onlymemesnow
OshyuOshyu18
Its impossible because guns cant fire in a vacuum, i believe.
L3GACIES
I think the main reason that's said is because in order for the combustion of the ammunition, oxygen needs to be present to give light to >
L3GACIES
The gunpowder. But the gunpowder is inside the shell where presumably it's closed off with at least some oxygen to propel the bullet. This >
L3GACIES
Is all speculation of course. I may be completely wrong
gladtoseeimontherighttrack
Only if you are using a flintlock.
Sharkface129
Bullets have their own propellant, so yes, they can.
Tigersarejustbigkitties
Huh? Can u please explain...
TheUglyGuy
All gunpowder contains an oxidizing chemical that provides the oxygen necessary for combustion. No outside oxygen needed.
mcsnurgleflurp
They fire underwater too. No oxygen gas anyway
Heyitszay
Bullets have their own oxygen source to burn as well as their own propellent. So they can indeed fire in a vacuum
OshyuOshyu18
Huh i was mis-informed. I shall begin planning my revenge. A head cant be much harder then a wasp nest to hit from space, right?
bumguts
Thanks for coming out.
DavidRoland
bullet would burn up in atmosphere
Thekingofbeans
It would not. It would just hit terminal velocity. It's aerodynamic and wouldn't be moving nearly as fast as a meteor.
DavidRoland
It would flatten as soon as ithit though
Thekingofbeans
So what?
DavidRoland
Drag would still apply. Lead melts easily
SlabGizor117
If you escaped the moons gravity and it was made out of diamond or whatever would withstand reentry, you wouldn't be precise enough
TheUglyGuy
Aye, that's the rub.
Thekingofbeans
It would only being going the speed the gun fired it at, then it would slow down to terminal velocity when it enters the atmosphere.
SlabGizor117
No, it would accelerate as it got deeper in Earth's gravity well. Think of a swing accelerating as it falls to the bottom of its path.
TheUglyGuy
How much it would accelerate in vacuum before it entered the atmosphere is the question.
SlabGizor117
Enough to cause it to burn up in the atmosphere is the only answer you really need
SlabGizor117
Enough to cause it to burn up in the atmosphere is the only answer you really need
SlabGizor117
Enough to cause it to burn up in the atmosphere is the only answer you really need
xbolt
Lunar escape velocity is 7800 fps. Rifle rounds top out at around 4000. So your shot will land back on the moon, sadly. (Also, no oxygen.)
FWAKADATHOOM
Railgun?
startrekreference
Gunpowder is self oxidizing so the lack of oxygen wont matter.
pizzamagica
wow calm down, my pc can only handle 60 fps
FrustratedBluffing
Lack of oxygen is not an issue. Pretty much since cartridges have been a thing gunpowder has been self oxidising.
xbolt
It appears you are correct. I feel like a goof now.
FrustratedBluffing
It's no biggie, that's hardly general knowledge.
TheUglyGuy
Building a rifle with that velocity isn't too hard, although you won't be likely able to fire it from your shoulder!
trebuchetguevera
You'd need some special propellant, because nitrocellulose won't get you any faster than ~6000 fps.
SilusCrow
By the time we sort out casual moon-landings, I'm sure we'll have developed sufficient recoil compensation to allow for this.
firagablitz
MAG all the way baby
xane
The recoil on that thing with low gravity would do terrible things.
TheUglyGuy
The absolute recoil wouldn't be any different in low gravity, especially since the impulse is tangent to the gravity vector.
MacroLoop
This is totally correct. But contact with the ground would be weaker in low gravity. I think you'd be more likely to stumble 1/2
Gray808
Which kinda makes it not a rifle, though, right?
feeltheice
Anything can be shoulder fired once
TheUglyGuy
Well, I suppose so!
TheUglyGuy
"Rifle" = "rifled barrel", so any gun with a rifled barrel is a rifle - the 16" guns on battleships were called rifles.
Gray808
Hmmm, yeah I can see that. Still when I think "rifle" I'm not thinking "battleship" heh.
shhep
Uh... language changes, mate. "A gun, especially one fired from shoulder level, having a long spirally grooved barrel" - oxford dictionary.