Posted on 09/13/2004 7:15:02 PM PDT by gutshot
Look on the bright side, if it was emitting more radiation it could be our international bug (terrorist) zapper. Attracts them just like the zapper does to moths on my backporch with the same effect. ;)
This will probably sound incredibly silly, but my first thought was Tom Clancy's Sum of All Fears. I don't usually buy into fiction becoming reality, but I was in Panama when he wrote Clear and Present Danger. It was like he had been there.
Did you see "The Sum of All Fears"? ... it wasn't quite right, and the director claims he wasn't trying to be politically-correct, that the story was too complex with the Palis working with Germans (a la Entebbe hijacking) and several other groups.
In that one, they find a shallow A-4 Skyhawk wreckage but the bomb core had been breached. The recovery team (some junk collectors in the desert) got irradiated and died (eventually). Of course, Israel would have known where the plane went down so it's a bit silly, but the premise was OK.
Some nuclear techs from Russia sold their expertise wo reshape the material and they placed it in a vending machine where the U.S. Prez showed up for the Superbowl.
I used to work for a company that did trade shows. After I left, an old friend from college (who's uncle owned the company) had to setup one of the buildings for the Prez's arrival. Of course the Secret Service comes early to scout the place and met with him and others. One of the things they (wisely) demanded was that *all* vending machines were removed for just such a reason. If they were to walk in and see one, they'd know something was fishy. So this part of the movie was preposterous. (This was back in the 1980's, don't remember exactly when).
see my next post after yours. A good read on this subject is "The Samson Option" by Seymour Hersh. Not necessarily a popular author but the book was a good read and goes through the subject at an easy level. My copy disappeared and I was lucky enough to find an old (new) one for about $6 on ebay.
THE MOVIE DIDN'T DO THE BOOK JUSTICE, BUT HIS MOVIES NEVER DO. I WILL CHECK THAT OUT. IT IS MY UNDERSTANDING, THOUGH, THAT SOMETHING SUCH AS A DIRTY BOMB OR SUITCASE BOMB COULD BE VERY CRUDELY CONSTRUCTED AND STILL EFFECTIVELY CREATE A CATASTROPHIC EVENT. IS THAT A MISCONCEPTION?
the USA used to have suitcase-size (portable, low-yield, low-radiation) for taking out bridges, like the large spans. We had these back in the 1960's but this was Russian Gen. Alexander Lebed's hype that prompted all this.
With Lebed, looking at the "twinkle" in his eye, I got the impression he was trying to do a bit of scare tactics and those weapons may be so old they won't work. Radioactive decay makes the weapon eventually near-useless (depending upon the age) and also irradiates the close components causing them to degrade.
Lebed was killed a few years ago in a helicopter accident. While helicopter accidents are not rare, I always wondered if he might have been taken out from the Russian side.
that's why you have to "refresh" your nation's nuclear arsenal from time-to-time. Usually the entire "bomb" unit, or a good portion thereof.
THAT'S GOOD TO KNOW. I KIND OF TAKE EVERYTHING WITH A GRAIN OF SALT THESE DAYS. I MEAN, MOST OF THE INFORMATION RELEASED TO US COMES FROM THE SAME AUTHORITIES WHO TOLD US TO PROTECT OURSELVES WITH DUCT TAPE!
I somewhat doubt that the a 200lb tamper would be made of HEU.
glad it was useful, fwiw ...
g'night, gotta hit the sack
I don't care about the physical dimensions as much as the force released shoiuld it blow. How many Megatons?
"I don't care about the physical dimensions as much as the force released shoiuld it blow."
Unless space aliens go down in their space ship and overhaul it, it ain't gonna blow.
Quick, get that guy who knows whether to cut the blue wire or the red wire.
It cannot detonate.
Because water is a wonderful shield. I used to sit on the edge of a running university uranium reactor with nothing but about 15 feet or so of water between myself and the core. We would turn the lights down and crank it up into the megawatt range. The core would glow with the most beautiful blue light. (Cerenkov Radiation)
Not a nuclear one.
Yes, there is a danger of an explosion if messed with. There is a large conventional explosive charge as part of the bomb. The broken arrow in Spain had this explosive charge go off, and it became a huge mess to clean up. Essentially it was a dirty nuke.
The conventional explosives do not degrade over time in most cases. Some even become more sensitive.
I should have been more clear in my post. No chance of a nuclear detonation.
Impossible to for it to detonate at this point. Unless some turd world wack digs it up and remakes it. A 1950's nuke has enough enriched uranium for a dozen modern nukes.
In a world where carpenters come back from the dead. Nothing is impossible.
It cannot detonate.
Are you 100% sure of that?
I'm not, and never will be.
(Gritted teeth)
"Would you mind not shooting at the thermonuclear weapons?"
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