Gold is a worse conductor than copper. The benefit is just protection from corrosion.
(Copper conductivity is 6 * 10^7 S/m, gold is 4*10^7 S/m. Silver is 6.3 * 10^7, but very prone to corrosion).
Clarification of intentions and telegraphing what we would do in certain circumstances is useful.
It avoids debates if Russia if, for example, Russia is reckless and then there's an accident that results in another Chernobyl-ish incident. Impact on the rest of Europe of Chernobyl was modest; and if it is an "accident", it could be tough to respond.
Signaling that we intend to hold Russia responsible is important for two reasons:
- It makes us more able to respond ourselves.
- It makes it so that Russia is less likely to guess wrong what we would do and inadvertently push us into escalation.
ic33
joined 1 year ago
Human self-sufficiency in space--- what's needed for any real redundancy-- is for sure >50 and probably >250 years away.
Space settlements are going to need support from Earth for the conceivable future.
Even a destroyed planet from global warming or the middle of the ocean is infinitely more hospitable than the space environment.