Re: Newspaper article on Plutonium

[Bernard L Cohen <blc+@pitt.edu>]

	My responses to the points raised are as follows:

On Mon, 25 Aug 1997, Fischer, Karl wrote:

> A troubling, highly sensational article was published today in the
> science section of the Detroit Free Press.  Just some excerpts:
> 
> "In six weeks, a probe carrying 72 pounds of plutonium will be launched
> from Cape Canaveral, Fla., for Saturn."
> 
> "If the probe slams into Earth's atmosphere during a flyby in 1999,
> nearly everyone on the planet could be in peril."

	--Something like 72,000 pounds of plutonium have been evaporated
in the atmosphere in bomb tests, a thousand times more by weight, and 6
times as many Curies. [220,000 Ktons of fission, which I assume to be
about 150,000 Ktons from Pu with a yield of 1.7 Kton/lb, with 20%
consumed by fission and the rest evaporated -- Please let me know if I am 
wrong on these numbers; weapons Pu is .11 Ci/g after the Pu141 has decayed
to Pu241, and Pu238 is 16.3 Ci/g]

> "Just one-millionth of a gram -- an invisible particle -- could cause
> lung or bone cancer if inhaled."
 
	--This statement is usually attributed to reactor Pu, mostly
Pu239. I have a standing offer to inhale 1000 particles of any size that
can be suspended in air. For Pu238, which is 44 x more Ci/g, I offer to
inhale 25 such particles. 

> "Experts know of no more poisonous material on Earth. 

	--Botulism toxin and anthrax spores are at least 10-100 times more
toxic per gram of intake.
	Of course all toxicity estimates for Pu depend on the validity of
linear-no threshold theory, which is highly questionable.

> I encourage all radiation protection professionals who frequent RADSAFE
> to please check out this article and respond.  Call, write, e-mail the
> Free Press, do whatever it takes.  We simply can't allow this sort of
> irresponsible journalism to continue unchecked.

	--You should provide addresses to which we can write


Bernard L. Cohen
Physics Dept.
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
Tel: (412)624-9245
Fax: (412)624-9163
e-mail: blc+@pitt.edu