Why Don't We Shoot Nuclear Waste Into Space? - Kurzgesaht

December 2022

concerning part of radioactive material is 3% of all radioactive byproducts (including clothes, tools) involved in nuclear power plants

launching nuclear waste into space is expensive, needs entire industry dedicated to it, would need hundreds of launches every year, costing billions

$4,000 per kg rocket payload, but $1,600 to mine separate and fabricate 1 kg nuclear fuel

LEO no-go: decaying orbit, collision risk

random vectors: orbits, one will come back to Earth eventually

solar system orbital mechanics: harder to shoot something into the sun than to shoot it out of the solar system

coal ash: 36,000t radioactive material per year, handled less carefully, leaks into environment, less radioactive, but more of it

however, some official sources and studies claim that there's nothing to worry about?