Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

To: kassie
A "dirty nuke" is a device designed for maximum radioactive fallout (at the expense of yield), as opposed to devices designed for maximum explosive yield/minimum fallout.
9 posted on 10/30/2001 6:40:57 AM PST by Cyber Liberty
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies ]


To: Cyber Liberty
Like this?

A "salted" nuclear weapon is reminiscent of fission-fusion-fission weapons, but instead of a fissionable jacket around the secondary stage fusion fuel, a non-fissionable blanket of a specially chosen salting isotope is used (cobalt-59 in the case of the cobalt bomb). This blanket captures the escaping fusion neutrons to breed a radioactive isotope that maximizes the fallout hazard from the weapon rather than generating additional explosive force (and dangerous fission fallout) from fast fission of U-238. Like this?

"Variable fallout effects can be obtained by using different salting isotopes. Gold has been proposed for short-term fallout (days), tantalum and zinc for fallout of intermediate duration (months), and cobalt for long term contamination (years). To be useful for salting, the parent isotopes must be abundant in the natural element, and the neutron-bred radioactive product must be a strong emitter of penetrating gamma rays."

142 posted on 10/30/2001 8:12:18 AM PST by GOPJ
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies ]

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article


FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson