Plutonium missing from Los Alamos lab (2 Grams)

Interestalert ^ | 6/18/03

[PBRSTREETGANG]

Did they check Homer Simpson's shirt?

[mewzilla]

Maybe to the germ du jour, but to radiation? Let's just hope we don't have to find out :)

[Frank_Discussion]

That's how I see it as well. Lot's cans of whupass everywhere.

[Calpernia]

bump!

[dead]

POGO said the fact the missing material was not reported is a violation of department policy

Pogo also said, “We have met the enemy, and he is us.”

[activationproducts]

Try to imagine how big a 2 gram chunk of steel or lead would be. PU239 is probably close enough in density for one to get an idea how big a 2 gram chunk could be. It would be more or less impossible to evenly distribute this small amount and have it poison enough people to cause problem via a dirty bomb. You would need kilograms to make a fission weapon.

This reminds me of problems that were reported at Rocky Flats where they couldn't account for plutonium there. Since it was essentially a machine shop for making nuclear triggers it was felt that much of the missing material existed in the form of tailings in one of their air filtration systems.

All in all this sort of thing is nothing new and probably nothing to get too excited about.

[HISSKGB]

Thanks for the flag. I could have easily missed this. Note how few are reporting it and how the AP emphasizes that the missing plutonium was in two teeny weeny vials.

So far I have found few of our illustrious press poobahs willing to dot the eyes and cross the tees. Newsmax and Insight are rare exceptions. The security violations associated with the University of California-managed nuclear labs are either not reported or attributed to some sloppiness.

In 2002 a UC nuclear agent of Chinese origin was arrested for passing secrets,

In 2001 two file cabinets and five boxes of classified UC nuclear secrets were discovered as if in a spy drop place at a miliary camp park.

In 2000 computer hard drives containing nuclear secrets disappeared at Los Alamos.

The 1990s are even worse; yet the spin is very odd. As the arrested Lee's supporters gained momentum in the press, the Clinton administration said they acted precipitously against Lee because of media pressure. As soon as that happened the NYT changed their already feeble reporting about the charges against Lee.

The WP, NYT and others refuse to print a comprehensive account of University of California problems in managing government nuclear labs. The one governmental nuclear lab managed by Lockheed Martin has not had the security violations that are associated with U of C labs.

[MEG33]

Thanks for the post.

[maxwell]

Try to imagine how big a 2 gram chunk of steel or lead would be. PU239 is probably close enough in density for one to get an idea how big a 2 gram chunk could be.

density 94Pu 19816 kg/m^3
density 82Pb 11340 kg/m^3
--> 2 g 94Pu = 0.1 cm^3, 2 g 82Pb = 0.2 cm^3
Not a whole heckuvalot.

From an ISIS (INSTITUTE FOR SCIENCE AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY) brief on North Korea: "Assuming five kilograms of plutonium per nuclear weapon..."