What Sort Of Weapons Would Troops Use In Battle On the Surface Of The Moon?

i prefer to just use an assault rifle, the bullets wen fired would curve over the horizon and hit the enemy on the other side of the moon. remember that we use space craft like Apollo 13 to use the moon as a sling shot.

Originally posted by deltaboy
i prefer to just use an assault rifle, the bullets wen fired would curve over the horizon and hit the enemy on the other side of the moon. remember that we use space craft like Apollo 13 to use the moon as a sling shot.

Some assualt rifles wouldnt work and add to the fact the calibre would be overkill.

Originally posted by rogue1

Most bombs will funtion except FAE's of course. This is because bombs carry their own oxidizing agents hence no need for oxygen. Just look at explosives detonating underwater, there is no free oxygen there.

Good point, I didn't think of underwater explosives. The same principles that let those work would mean they work in space, too. I figured that bombs would carry oxidizing agents, I just wasn't sure whether they would be sufficient to create the same level of explosion as would take place in an oxygen environment. The only difference for a bomb on the moon is the explosion obviously wouldn't start any fires.

A couple of people mentioned rail guns, which would work fine on the moon. They made me think of a concept known as the 'mass driver'. Basically, a bunch of metal rods are fired from orbit at a planet and the velocity builds up so much that when they strike something, well, they have lots of kinetic energy due to their high velocity and mass (E = 0.5mv^2). Strictly speaking, that isn't surface battle on the moon, but whatever

s shotgun?! are you mad? youd go flying!

Just like from "Halo 2", BULL!!! No offense, I'm just saying, but I don't think bullets can fire through space. I asked about it Thursday, and I heard a pretty detailed description that if we did, the pressure would tear the bullets, not to meantion the gun, to shreads. At leasts today's technology.
In a way, I hope I'm wrong.

My question, why would they send people up to the Moon to fight? If anyone can afford to build on the Moon something worthwile, then we'd of developed robots that can do the fighting for us.
Just put a couple of machine guns on some rovers and that'll be it...

Originally posted by SEAL Trident
Just like from "Halo 2", BULL!!! No offense, I'm just saying, but I don't think bullets can fire through space. I asked about it Thursday, and I heard a pretty detailed description that if we did, the pressure would tear the bullets, not to meantion the gun, to shreads. At leasts today's technology.
In a way, I hope I'm wrong.

I don't know why the pressure would tear the gun or bullet to shreads, that makes no sense at all. What are you talking about the chamber pressure or what ?
If anything there would be less pressure as the moon has no atmosphere, therefore there wouldn't be any air resistance in the barrel.

Were these people talking about it from a physics point of view or just talking BS opinions ?

Originally posted by DragonsDemesne
I just wasn't sure whether they would be sufficient to create the same level of explosion as would take place in an oxygen environment. The only difference for a bomb on the moon is the explosion obviously wouldn't start any fires.

You have a point with no atmosphere the shockwave propagation should be weaker, on the other hand the velocity of fragments would be higher.

I'm not sure, but the actual detonation velocity of the explosive maybe higher.

What Sort Of Weapons Would Troops Use In Battle On the Surface Of The Moon?

Swords, Bayonets and fists!

At last it would go back to hand to hand combat and not who has the most money and can build the better gun!

The Moon would make a level playing field for everyone if there was ever a war!

i dont understand this thing about pressure either...on the moon there would be virtually no atmosphere to stop the bullet, it would just keep on going and going at the highest violocity

I think the matterial used is really the thing. I'm not 100% sure. What I can argue is that yea, they wouldn't go far if anything. That's what I mean by "BULL". You probally could watch it fly away at an millimeter per second after it leaves, maybe like 10 secs after you pull the trigger. Next thing you know, the point is looking at you. Now, it's going farther, and farther, and it's gone. Meanwhile, you and your enemy are staring at the rounds the whole time.

sorry, er..could you explain that? i didnt get any of it....your saying the bullet would be slowed down? by er..what exactly?

Hmm lol, I think you seem to have Matrix fixation. If what you said was true then everything eould be in slow motion on the moon.
Just FYI, time doesn't slow down on the moon.

Think about, after a while, no gravity would screw it up sooner or later. Then again, I haven't been in space, nor have I've seen any test in space with bullets. Plus, I'm more of a military man, not a scientist. Plain and simple, I'm wrong, no surprise really.

I think I posted it previously, one of the Apollo astronauts hit a 6 irn 600 meters on the moon in his bulky space suit. A good 6 iron by Tiger Woods would travel about 180 meters.
A simlar difference in performance would apply to bullets as well.

The factors which limit the range of projectiles are gravity and atmospheric friction, bothe of which are greatly reduced on the moon.

Originally posted by rogue1
I think I posted it previously, one of the Apollo astronauts hit a 6 irn 600 meters on the moon in his bulky space suit. A good 6 iron by Tiger Woods would travel about 180 meters.
A simlar difference in performance would apply to bullets as well.

The factors which limit the range of projectiles are gravity and atmospheric friction, bothe of which are greatly reduced on the moon.

Ah, okay. My bad.



[edit on 15-5-2005 by SEAL Trident]

lol thanks for clearing that up man, i was confused what you were on about, the only think more deadly then combat on the moon..using guns in space, and yeah, halo 2 space combat is pretty bull