A nuclear bomb enters the port (What If?)

National Post (Canada) ^ | 1/6/03 | Richard Foot

[harpseal]

Ping

[RightWhale]

Go ahead, cry wolf until nobody cares. Terrorists could pop up at any time, anywhere. They could be scattering nails in your driveway right now.

[Travis McGee]

Go ahead, assume the Ostrich Defensive Posture. It will keep you safe. Anyone who thinks different is a paranoid that would believe our enemies mean to do us harm. What proof I ask you is there of that?

[VMI70]

"It is an early winter morning in 2003. The pair of suspension bridges that span the deepest, and one of the largest, ice-free harbours in the world are laden with traffic heading from the Halifax peninsula across the water to Dartmouth. During a normal morning rush hour, these bridges would be teeming with vehicles going the other way, carrying commuters from Dartmouth's suburbs into the office towers and workplaces of downtown Halifax. But this is no normal morning.

A nuclear device, in a package about the size of a small car,..."

Amazing that this was posted today, as last night I was pondering a similar scenario and was going to post the following hypothetical as a vanity:

What would happen if the venue in the above article was changed to New York or San Francisco, and the bomb was detonated?
Assume that it was powerful enough that everything within a 1 mile radius is vaporized, total death and major destruction within a 3 mile radius, and whatever else happens to life and property as the radius increases.

Either nobody would take credit for the explosion, or many would.

Given that scenario, who would we retaliate against, how, and why?

I'd be really interested to hear everyones thoughts...

[SLB]

If you read Tom Clancy, a scientist would scoop up a sample of radioactive material and send it through a quick analysis. It would revel the reactor that manufactured the material. Then a quick follow up would locate the material and cruise missiles would follow.

[Squantos]

DOE ARG BTTT !!

Stay Safe !

[VMI70]

"...a scientist would scoop up a sample of radioactive material and send it through a quick analysis. It would revel the reactor that manufactured the material. Then a quick follow up would locate the material and cruise missiles would follow."

I assume Clancy is correct in his research, but I must say that I would like to hear it confirmed from a more authoritative source.

Should I assume you mean nuclear armed cruise missles?

Say the material from the physics package was found to have been reprocessed at Sellafield, located on the western coast of England, which does a lot of commercial reprocessing. Somewhere along the line enough material was stolen to make a nuke.

Do we bomb England for losing the Plutonium, or do we engage in a worldwide manhunt to try and find the perps, a la Bin Laden. If we do that, and it turns out to be a terrorist organization, not a nation-state, who do we bomb?

[Quilla]

Calling Dirk Pitt.

[mewzilla]

Anyone seen the Palermo Senator and its cargo of hot Italian tiles lately?

[Centurion2000]

Given that scenario, who would we retaliate against, how, and why?

One, nuclear retaliation would be sure to follow. It may not be the right people that did it but SOMEONE gets nuked.

2) If it's tracked to islamic terrorists, open season on Islam in North America

[harpseal]

I have read Tom Clancy but in the real world U235 and plutonium can not be traced to specific reactors or processing plants. Besides what are we going to do if we trace it to a 1970's Soviet plant/reactor? Do we nuke Russia because some one stole a bomb or the radio-active material. What do we do if the sample has multiple sources? I wish some of the solutions were as simple as Clancy projects.

Stay well - Stay safe - Stay armed - Yorktown

[WaveThatFlag]

Target #1: Nova Scotia!!!


PLEEEZE.

[Gemflint]

BINGO!

Interesting that it was a neutron detector, NOT a geiger counter that detected that radiation. BIG honking difference there.

Wonder what European nuclear power plant those tiles came from. Must have been the French, they're always re-decorating... [/sarcasm] :-)

[ZeitgeistSurfer]

The return address is simple: radical Islam. The paymasters are the Saudis, the protectors and enablers are Iraq, Iran, Syria, Libya, and Pakistan. For destroying an American city, two of each of their cities get nuked.

[null and void]

Target #1: Nova Scotia!!!

Read it again, just a way station on the road to Chicago.

The only reason to detonate it in Halifax is "salvage fusing". That is to salvage some destruction from a bomb gone astray. Also complicates the job of tracing the source...

[SLB]

Do we bomb England for losing the Plutonium,

Better not at this time, my daughter is leaving for 6 months at Oxford next Wednesday. {/sarcasm}

[Poohbah]

Remember that 1000-pound MUF at Savannah River?

Seems that it was caused by the stuff getting stuck in the plumbing.

That is how closely nations like the US and the UK track their fissionable material.

A far more likely scenario is that the stuff came from Russia or China, courtesy of piss-poor auditing.

There is a strong possibility that not even RUSSIA knows how much nuclear fuel they brewed from 1943-1991.

[Loyalist]

The only reason to detonate it in Halifax is "salvage fusing"

Being from Nova Scotia, I take cold comfort from the consequences of mere "salvage fusing," to wit:

The loss of Canada's major Atlantic port;
The loss of the Canadian Navy's Atlantic fleet and the largest military complex in Canada;
Significant damage to Nova Scotia's electricity grid with the destruction of the Tufts Cove generating plant;
Further economic depression in Atlantic Canada with the loss of the region's economic centre; etc., etc.

[Loyalist]

The only reason to detonate it in Halifax is "salvage fusing"

Being from Nova Scotia, I take cold comfort from the consequences of mere "salvage fusing," to wit:

The loss of Canada's major Atlantic port;
The loss of the Canadian Navy's Atlantic fleet and the largest military complex in Canada;
Significant damage to Nova Scotia's electricity grid with the destruction of the Tufts Cove generating plant;
Further economic depression in Atlantic Canada with the loss of the region's economic centre; etc., etc.