[ RadSafe ] Suitcase Nukes

[JPreisig at aol.com]

Hmmmmm,

     This is from:    jpreisig at aol.com.

      Dear Radsafers,

           Hope all is well in your home country.  Suitcase nukes, huh?  The 
60
      Minutes program (quite a while ago now) discussed Russian nuclear
      material inventory problems, and the possibility of suitcase nukes being
      on the black market.  I hope the US government has a better 
understanding
      of this problem than is commonly known.

           As for the lifting weight of such devices, the basic masses of the 
uranium
      or plutonium in such devices is readily available in graduate Health 
Physics
      texts.  I won't mention any names of such texts.  They are readily 
      available to many people.  As for additional weight of such nuclear 
      devices, due to electronics and conventional chemical explosives used to
      compress nuclear materials, think about the use of modern chemical
      explosives and electronics versus chemicals and electronics available
      in 1945.   Most everything is smaller now.   The actual designs of such
      devices have been discussed in popular magazines, student theses
      and dissertations, graduate study class notes, and on popular
      scientific television shows.

            A bit upsetting, but North Korea has actual (not-suitcase) nukes 
and
      developing launch capability.  Their rocket program appears to be
      something like the USA had in the 1950's or thereabouts.  Their short 
      range missiles have the capability of hitting Japan.  Their long range
      missiles (if they work properly) might be able to hit Hawaii, Alaska,
       Seattle or San Francisco.  This is very troubling.  I wonder if the 
USA 
       has any rocket propelled launch capability (for nuclear weapons)
       located in Japan.  If I were Japan right now, I'd be looking to develop
       a nuclear weapons program, complete with rocket-launching
       capability.  I wonder if Japan is not allowed to have such things.

             If Korea were to launch a nuclear weapon or more at Japan, I 
suspect
      the USA would have to respond by launching ICBM's from the USA,
      submarine nukes, nukes from airplanes, and/or nukes carried by cruise
      missiles.  The USA could probably vaporize most North Korean cities,
      and their leader.  The only question after that would be how would 
      the Russians and Chinese respond to such a US counter-attack.
      No wonder George W. is worried.

             If I had a copy of LaMarsh's Nuclear Engineering book, I'd be
      trying to hide it in a safe place right now.


            Maybe it is time to build a nuclear shelter in the back yard 
right now???
      A well placed suitcase nuke could cause considerable damage.

            Keep your eyes open --- the life you save might be your own.
     I hope these terrorist guys leave the PATH (NYC/NJ) trains alone.


            Regards,           Joseph R. (Joe) Preisig, Ph.D.