cientists in and out of government said yesterday that the anthrax strike on Capitol Hill involved an advanced, highly refined powder that is quite dangerous and not the primitive form of the germ that some federal officials have recently described. Posted on 10/24/2001 10:09:24 PM PDT by l33t
cientists in and out of government said yesterday that the anthrax strike on Capitol Hill involved an advanced, highly refined powder that is quite dangerous and not the primitive form of the germ that some federal officials have recently described.
Three top scientists — all with experience in germ weapons and knowledge of the federal investigation — said in interviews yesterday that the powder was high-grade and in theory capable of inflicting wide casualties.
And, two of the scientists said, the anthrax was altered from its natural state to reduce its electrostatic charge, a process that prevents small particles from sticking together and to nearby objects, thus making them more likely to become airborne.
The experts noted that turning anthrax into a weapon of mass destruction still required added steps, like making the powder in quantity and learning how to disseminate it effectively. One expert said that only the United States, the Soviet Union and Iraq were known to have developed the necessary technique. But the experts said some officials were playing down the powder's potency out of ignorance or an impulse to reassure a frightened public.
Federal officials and weapons experts have given varying descriptions of the powder in the 10 days since an aide to Senator Tom Daschle of South Dakota, the majority leader, opened a letter containing the anthrax.
Some federal officials have said the germs were an unrefined preparation of microbes, while others have warned that they were potent and easily turned into a cloud that could infect many people. Anthrax spores in the powder contaminated at least 28 people in Senate offices.
None of these people have become sick, but federal investigators said the Daschle letter may have leaked anthrax in transit from New Jersey and infected postal workers there and in Washington. Two Washington postal workers have died of anthrax.
William C. Patrick III, a microbiologist who designed germ weapons for the United States before President Richard M. Nixon renounced them in 1969, said he had learned details of the federal inquiry from a senior investigator. The Senate powder, Mr. Patrick said, was quite potent and capable of sailing far through the air to hurt many people.
He said the makers of the anthrax spores sent to Mr. Daschle's office had produced a dry powder that was remarkably free of extraneous material.
"It's high-grade," said Mr. Patrick, who consults widely on making germ defenses. "It's free flowing. It's electrostatic free. And it's in high concentration."
Experts on germ weaponry agree that the removal of electrostatic charges is a major step toward making an effective munition. The Soviet Union and United States developed sophisticated ways of diminishing this attraction and helping the particles float more freely, increasing their ease of dissemination and likelihood of inhalation.
Mr. Patrick said that whoever sent the Daschle letter had clearly achieved this step. "It's fluffy," he said, quoting experts who examined the powder. "It appears to have an additive that keeps the spores from clumping." Removing the charge, he added, is a black art, few details of which are known publicly.
Assertions by some federal officials that the material was not the type that would be used in weapons are "nonsense," he said. "The only difference between this and weapons grade is the size of the production. You can produce a very good grade of anthrax powder in the lab. The issue is whether those efforts can be expanded in scale, so you can make large quantities."
Richard Spertzel, a microbiologist and former head of biological inspection teams in Iraq for the United Nations, said he, too, had talked to federal investigators about the Senate powder.
"There's no question this is weapons quality," Dr. Spertzel said. "It has all the characteristics — fine particles and readily dispersible." Particles must be small to penetrate deep into human lungs, where they can start a lethal infection.
Al Zelicoff, a physician and expert on biological weapons at the Sandia National Laboratory in Albuquerque, who is developing a computerized system to allow epidemiologists to track suspicious disease outbreaks, said his conversations with federal investigators had alarmed him.
"These people know what they're doing," Dr. Zelicoff said of the anthrax terrorists. "I'm truly worried. They have the keys to the kingdom."
He cautioned, however, that the federal investigation was continuing and had produced results that were preliminary, with no firm conclusions.
"But if they have indeed perfected the aerosolization process," Dr. Zelicoff said of the terrorists, "it's strongly suggested they can do large-scale dissemination when they wish."
No. Lets deport them. Let their homeland countries pay for their upkeep. We're already overtaxed.
I haven't.
In the famous words of Ross (disappeared of the radar screen) Perot. I'm all ears.
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