Marines may have broken seals on known radioactive material

Christian Science Monitor via Drudge ^ | Thursday, April 10, 5:48pm EDT | unnamed idiot

[woofie]

Marines may have broken seals on known radioactive material

Posted: Thursday, April 10, 5:48pm EDT

American troops who suggested they uncovered evidence of an active nuclear weapons program in Iraq unwittingly may have stumbled across known stocks of low-grade uranium, officials said Thursday. They said the US troops may have broken UN seals meant to keep control of the radioactive material. Leaders of a US Marine Corps combat engineering unit claimed earlier this week to have found an underground network of laboratories, warehouses and bombproof offices beneath the closely monitored Tuwaitha nuclear research center just south of Baghdad.

The Marines said they discovered 14 buildings at the site which emitted unusually high levels of radiation, and that a search of one building revealed "many, many drums" containing highly radioactive material. If documented, such a discovery could bolster Bush administration claims that Saddam Hussein was trying to develop nuclear weaponry.

Lt. Cmdr. Charles Owens, a spokesman for the US Central Command, said officials there have not heard anything through military channels about a Marine inspection at Tuwaitha.

The Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency, which has inspected the Tuwaitha nuclear complex at least two dozen times and maintains a thick dossier on the site, had no immediate comment.

But an expert familiar with UN nuclear inspections told The Associated Press that it was implausible to believe that US forces had uncovered anything new at the site. Instead, the official said, the Marines apparently broke UN seals designed to ensure the materials aren't diverted for weapons use, or end up in the wrong hands.

"What happened apparently was that they broke IAEA seals, which is very unfortunate because those seals are integral to ensuring that nuclear material doesn't get diverted," the expert said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

[piasa]

I mean, all nuclear fuel. Low grade stuff may still be there.

Nice of them to leave some nice dirty bomb material there under seal.

[rwfromkansas]

Looks like we have near our 10th false WMD alarm. I am sick of these false reports of finding WMD, feeling good only to have it shattered to pieces because nothing was really found of significance.

[rwfromkansas]

hmmmm

Perhaps this was found later? If not, then the UN is in a lie......

[mathurine]

The Marines are their usual walrus-like selves, always looking for a tight little seal.

[MIgramma]

That's what I was thinking!
Like what would Blitzie take for a few spare seals?

[kimmie7]

Yeah.... "Now, Mr. Ruthless Killer Do-anything-to-win-or-kill-your-enemies Hussein, this stuff is VERY dangerous and could be used to kill a lot of people, or make stuff to kill a lot of people. So you be a good boy and don't open it, kay?" Why not take it or dispose of it elsewhere? Seal it and leave it? Perhaps I'm just not liberal enough to understand this.

[Sola Veritas]

The IAEA is lying. This CANNOT be partially enriched or depleted Uranium that these Marines have found.

Note - Their (Marine) reports said that the material in drums was highly radioactive. First point - the Marines would know better than to open a drum. Second point - Uranium produces Alpha Particles/Radiation. It cannot penentrate even the thin walls of a paper drum. If this was Uranium in these drums (especially Yellow Cake (AKA Uranium Hexafluoride). It would not be readily detectable outside of the drum. Third point - unless things have changed radically in the military, the type of detection instruments these Marines would have would be for the purpose of detecting high energy Gamma Radiation (Gamma Rays). They would probably not be able to detect weak Alpha particles.

Therefore, if the Marine reports are true. Then the material in these drums would be more consistent with nuclear reactor wastes which would produce strong emanations of Gamma Rays. Reactor waste would contain Plutonium that could be extracted for weapons and other radioactive isotopes like Cesium 137 which would be a terrorist's dream stuff. Cesium 137 would be very effective in permanently contaminating land, water supplies, etc.

[whadizit]

Man, having that seal on it really did a lot to prevent Saddam from using it if he wanted to!! Thanks, UN, for just leaving it there.

[Jean S]

First point - the Marines would know better than to open a drum.

Would it be necessary to open the drum for a Geiger Counter to work?

[stylin19a]

Don't we have access to a bazillion Iraqi scientists who have defected ? Wouldn't they be aware of this stuff ? Shouldn't they be giving us the straight skinny on it ?

[MightyMouseToSaveThe Day]

No kidding. What poppycock. It's that notorious "unnamed source" spouting off again. Saddam didn't have any banned weapons, but if he did, it was plutonium, or maybe uranium, and the UN inspectors didn't see it, but if they HAD seen it, they would have tagged it although they're not saying they did, and therefore, it was the Marines who caused the problem by probably breaking seals that may have been on what didn't exist despite the large warning signs that would have said "DO NOT BREAK SEAL--HIGHLY RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS MAY BE HERE--OR MAY NOT BE" (sarcasm)...uh huh. Biggest cockamamie story of the day...

[infowarrior]

The Marines also broke the seals on numerous barrels of "whoop-ass"...

Oh, now, that's GOOD! They don't even buy it in cans. They buy barrels of it, in bulk, at Costco!

But they only buy "BUSH" brand, heavy-duty, nine-ply, industrial grade. (Sold at a Pentagon branch office near you)...

the infowarrior

[Sola Veritas]

Yes it would. Uranium only produces Alpha radiation/particles. Even if the Marines had instrumentation capable of detecting Alpha Ratiation, these detectors must be very close to the source of Alpha radiation (almost touching it). Alpha particles are totally ionized Helium nuclei that can only travel a short distant through air (not more than a few centimeters). They can be readily stopped by even a thin sheet of paper. Therefore, unless the drum was opened, Uranium inside would not be dectectable. Of course there could be residles on the surface, but this would not produce "high levels."

On the other hand, many of the radioactive isotopes found in reactor wastes are Gamma emitters. A Gamma (ray) is a photon very similar to xray. It would readily be dectected outside of the drums, and (with a sensitive enough instrument) at quite a distant. Even an old fashioned Geiger counter would be able to detect a high level from many feet away.

By the way, Geiger counters (and similar robust instruments) are what the military uses. Most standard NBC (nuclear, Bio, chem) units would not carry instruments capable of detecting Alpha particles.