Cosmos 954 and Cassini Flyby

[SENES Consultants Limited <dgorber@senes.on.ca>]

The discussions on the Cassini flyby have made reference to the re-entry 
and breakup of the Soviet satellite Cosmos 954 near Great Slave Lake in 
January 1978.   Although perhaps not directly relevant to any potential 
risks (now past) associated with Cassini,  the recovery of the radioactive 
satellite debris was a unique and very interesting experience for me.  The 
following  may be of interest to some Radsafers.

As previously indicated, the satellite's re-entry was along the eastern arm 
of Great Slave Lake in Canada's Northwest Territories (now Nunavut), along 
a northeast direction.  The Phase 2 search (under contract to the Atomic 
Energy Control Board in the summer of 1978) for the debris involved ground, 
vehicle and air surveys (DC-3 and helicopter).

The materials recovered in the summer search (which focused on permanent 
and temporary areas of habitation and on transportation routes) comprised 
about 10 to 12 larger fragments along the re-entry trajectory  (found by 
the air surveys) and over 3000 smaller, windblown particles found  by over 
a large fan-like area to the southeast of the trajectory.   Seven of the 
larger fragments were rods (about 2 cm diameter x 10 cm long) that were 
determined in the Phase I survey (the winter survey initiated  immediately 
after the re-entry) to be beryllium covered with niobium.  The dose rates 
in near-contact with these rods ranged up to 100 rad/h.

The windblown particles (previously molten, bead-like and less than 1 mm in 
diameter) were located over a vast area south of Great Slave, some as far 
as 300 km away, with the particle size decreasing with distance.  These 
particles ranged from about 10 to more than 100 mrad/h at near-contact, and 
were generally less than 30 uR/h including background at 1 m.   The Phase 1 
survey had determined that the particles consisted mainly of enriched 
uranium and associated fission products.

A report on the search and recovery was prepared for the AECB in March of 
1979, but I don't know if extra copies are still available.
Leo M. Lowe, Ph.D.
Associate, Senior Health and
Environmental Physicist

SENES Consultants Limited
121 Granton Drive, Unit 12
RICHMOND HILL, Ontario
Canada L4B 3N4
Tel:  (905) 764-9380
Fax:  (905) 764-9386
Email Address:  llowe@senes.on.ca
Web Site:  http://www.senes.on.ca/
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