Tungsten, an unassuming metal, is crucial in the military.
It possesses remarkable properties: an extremely high melting point, exceeding 3,000 degrees Celsius; and an astonishing density, comparable to gold.
Tungsten is incredibly hard, like the sharp teeth of an armor-piercing projectile, easily tearing through steel.
It is also the soul of guns and cannons, giving weapons immense destructive power.
More importantly, it plays a significant role in the aerospace field, becoming a vital component of high-flying weapons.
Tungsten alloys are the best choice for manufacturing armor-piercing projectiles. The core of the powerful fin-stabilized discarding sabot armor-piercing projectiles used on tanks is tungsten. Our Type 1130 close-in weapon system also uses this material in its shells.
Another ingenious use of tungsten alloys is in the internal bores of guns and cannons. It is wear-resistant, withstands the impact of high-speed projectiles, and remains stable even under high temperature and pressure.
Aerospace engines operate at extremely high temperatures, making tungsten alloys an excellent protective material. They effectively resist high-temperature corrosion.
Tungsten has a high density, therefore, tungsten alloys are also commonly used in rocket engine nozzles and counterweight components used to balance aircraft.
Chinese scientists have made significant breakthroughs in tungsten materials research. They have made considerable progress, particularly in the manufacture and application of new tungsten materials.
In recent years, China has achieved fruitful results in the development of new tungsten materials, with researchers demonstrating their hard work across various fields.
The South China Morning Post recently reported that Chinese scientists have created a type of tungsten with exceptional toughness.
This new material has made Western countries take notice of China’s technological capabilities.
European and American countries have long been stuck on the technological bottlenecks of tungsten, especially in improving its toughness and compressive strength, with little progress.
Our researchers have devoted considerable effort to research and conducted countless experiments, finally creating a super-tough tungsten with a dual-nanostructure.
This new tungsten material overcomes the problem of traditional tungsten alloys: high hardness but insufficient toughness.
It possesses extremely high tensile strength and toughness, capable of withstanding a tensile force of 1350 MPa, almost comparable to super steel.
Even more impressive is its superior high-temperature resistance and corrosion resistance, far surpassing that of super steel.
The emergence of this new tungsten material immediately conjures up the legendary image of the “Rod of God,” a space-based kinetic energy weapon.
This is a material capable of changing the nature of warfare, possessing immense destructive power that sends chills down one’s spine.
Two satellites, one monitoring the target, the other releasing a bomb. The bomb’s warhead is made of tungsten, incredibly hard. The Americans have already drawn up the design, describing it as 30 centimeters in diameter, 6 to 9 meters long, and weighing several tons.
On the battlefield, the satellite releases tungsten rods, which fall like a rain of metal. Earth’s gravity accelerates them, and small rockets provide an additional boost. A guidance system precisely controls their trajectory, ensuring accurate hits on the target. Ultimately, these tungsten rods strike the target at unimaginable speeds, reaching Mach 31, like meteors falling from the sky.
The tungsten rod possesses astonishing kinetic energy; the energy released upon impact is enough to destroy hundreds of meters of concrete and underground nuclear facilities, its destructive power comparable to a small nuclear bomb.
It penetrates its target entirely through kinetic energy, producing no nuclear radiation, making it a “clean” weapon.
This powerful weapon is naturally not intended for ordinary targets; its true purpose is to destroy intercontinental ballistic missile silos.
What use can the super tungsten rod developed by the Chinese team be? Is this thing even feasible?
Actually, it’s not that difficult. If we wanted to build it, we could do it in no time. Our country has already overcome the communication challenges in the dark, so even if the super tungsten rod passes through the atmosphere at high speed, its attitude can be steadily controlled. The Americans gave up, for a simple reason: they simply don’t have the technology. Even if they could build it, they wouldn’t be able to hit the target accurately.
This year, the Chang’e 6 return capsule entered the atmosphere at 31 times the speed of sound. Imagine if that speed had been any faster—the consequences would have been unimaginable. Ultimately, however, it landed precisely at its designated location. If this were made of tungsten alloy, it would crash down without slowing down—wouldn’t that be the legendary “Rod of God”?
It could be built, but what would be its actual use?
The Rod of God would be expensive! Tungsten metal itself is pricey; a few tons of tungsten would cost at least several million. That doesn’t even include the costs of smelting, processing, and manufacturing; a single warhead would cost over ten million. That’s enough to buy several nuclear warheads.
The Rod of God was envisioned as a kinetic weapon to destroy underground targets, but this has many practical problems. Think about it: using it to attack missile silos—even if it penetrates the ground, you can’t confirm if there are missiles inside. What if it’s empty? Wouldn’t that be a waste of effort? Moreover, the enemy could easily create many fake silos to mislead you. Therefore, the United States ultimately abandoned this plan.
The asteroid belt—that’s the real Rod of God. Imagine an asteroid weighing thousands of tons, coming from distant interstellar space.
We capture it, then guide it to precisely impact its target. The impact, the power—it was enough to cause devastating damage.
Western countries are certainly uncomfortable. With the advent of super tungsten, China can use it to create many high-tech products, both military and civilian. Those countries hostile to us certainly won’t like it. This super tungsten has indeed made them uneasy.
Post time: Feb-24-2026