Skin dose from enriched uranium

[maay100@bgumail.bgu.ac.il (Quastel)]

Dear Radsafers,                                         August 16, 1997

       A local author is writing a thriller involving terrorists with
atomic bombs available to them. He asked me what mass of enriched uranium,
if handled with bare hands, could cause radiation burns to the skin. Also,
what mass of unshielded enriched uranium would cause sufficient acute whole
body exposure to cause a lethal acute radiation syndrome?

        My background is nuclear medicine and I couldn't answer him, so I
thought to cast the question to those probably in the know. Thanks.

                                Mike Quastel