WTF?!?!
ROP trial run?
A test.
I wonder who was at the fair checking for radiation?
Got too close to florescent lights or smoke alarms.
Did they ever find the Nuclear materials lost from Los Alamos National Laboratory http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/nation/20040625-1600-lab-missingkeys.html
Isn't New Mexico one of the states that we've tested bombs in? Maybe the level they recorded is the norm for that part of the state.
Illegal dumping.
The question is, what kind of radiation was detected, alpha,beta or gamma and in what ratio?
factoid: A granite countertop is detectabe with a Geiger counter.
Did they check the Churro machine?
WTF
Holy fudge.
Police believe the radiation was coming from Cobalt 57, a material used in the medical and plumbing industries. Cobalt-57 is a radioactive poison used in biological research. A bomb squad unit and hazardous materials teams were searching the area for any additional devices. (
Sounds like someone found a radiological dirty bomb.
I'm a long time lurker and learner here.(I have never posted before)
My son was at this fair grounds tonight.
He called us several hours ago to tell us they had to evacuate the building he was in.
He travels with a Christian organization that puts on Christian youth concerts around the country. When he was talking to my husband earlier he was told they(the authorites I imagine) smelled gas so they were told to turn off their cell phones.
He just called us back to say they had to pack up and were leaving, the event was called off. He pretty much said the same things the article said.
I guess this happening(bomb and nuclear waste news) will be buried somewhere on page 16b of tomorrows paper. Wonder how much of this stuff we never do hear about.
ping
-PJ
A hand held scintillator would be a far better device. You can also make scintillators that can directly detect alpha and neutrons as well.
A hand held gamma/beta scintillator normally uses a NaI(Tl) - Thallium doped Sodium Iodide - crystal/photomultiplier tube for detection and an alpha scintillator often uses a ZnS(Ag) - Silver activated zinc sulfide - coated Mylar (or similar material) film/photomultiplier for detection.
Neutron detectors are especially tricky. The following is a description for a portable neutron detector:
The detector, located within the probe housing, consists of 1/16th inch Plexiglas plates containing Li6 interfaces sandwiched between layers of ZnS(Ag). The detector is surrounded by a moderating shield consisting of a mixture of B10-Mn-Ti. This neutron moderator scatters and absorbs neutrons selectively with regard to their energy level. Within the crystal, most of those neutrons below 1 MEV strike the Li6 interfaces and produce alpha particles, which in turn strike the ZnS(Ag) interfaces and cause scintillations.
Above 1 MEV, most neutrons, thru proton recoil in the Plexiglas, produce proton particles, which strike the ZnS(Ag) interfaces, also cause scintillations.
These scintillations are carried thru a light pipe to a photomultiplier tube for counting. The entire assembly is housed inside a cadmium tube with heavy cadmium plates on each end. The assembled detector is then housed in a round steel housing about 10 inches long and 3 inches wide.
Note: a photomultiplier tube is a light sensitive device which converts the energy from photons to readable electrical signals.
A less ominous explanation might be that the material is some contaminated scrap from Sandia National Lab, which is just a few blocks down the way. Perhaps scrap, perhaps some old specimens used in training people to use radiation monitors. The labeling would make more sense then.