[AgThorn]

fascinating. Obviously, you have a lot more knowledge in this than I.

I was always under the impression that the 'triggering' material that might deteriorate would / could be something simple, or should I say more readably attainable, like c4 or the like.

Perhaps this is not possible. Which is a relief, I must say.

[Southack]

No, two different things. The conventional explosives used are very special. The CCCP had to steal our conventional explosives chemical recipe because theirs weren't handling the radioactive environment very well. And even our conventional explosives don't last that long in that environment.

The trigger, however, is typically a mixture of beryillium and polonium-210...isotopes that decay rapidly due to their short half-lives....which you need short half-lives, of course, because you want to emit lots of neutrons...really, really fast in order to get your BOOM from your chain reaction instead of just nuclear reactor-style heat and radiation.

That being said, it is CERTAIN that the terrorists will set off a dirty bomb at some point. That's basically what any of the old ex-Soviet nukes are going to be by now, at most.