After A Nuclear 9/11

The Washington Post ^ | March 25, 2008 | Jay Davis

[2ndDivisionVet]

The appearance of nuclear weapons materials on the black market is a growing global concern, and it is crucial that the United States reinforce its team of nuclear forensics experts and modernize its forensics tools to prepare for or respond to a possible nuclear terrorist attack.

Large quantities of nuclear materials are inadequately secured in several countries, including Russia and Pakistan. Since 1993, there have been more than 1,300 incidents of illicit trafficking of nuclear materials, including plutonium and highly enriched uranium, both of which can be used to develop an atomic bomb. And these are only the incidents we know about.

It is quite possible that a terrorist group could acquire enough nuclear material to build a bomb. Nuclear materials have been discovered by border patrols, seized in police raids from India to, as recently as last fall, Slovakia, and even hidden in a flower garden in Hanover, Germany. With enough stolen material, only a few specialists would be needed to build a nuclear weapon. After that, terrorists would lack only a truck to deliver it.

If a terrorist group were to detonate a nuclear weapon on U.S. soil, the FBI, CIA, Department of Homeland Security and the nation's national labs would race to track down those responsible and prevent any further detonations by that group.

After the Sept. 11 attacks, the time between the fall of the twin towers and our response in Afghanistan was less than one month. But current U.S. nuclear forensics capability -- which involves analyzing nuclear radiation and isotopic signatures -- can't guarantee definitive information within a month of an attack.

Fibers, fingerprints, hair samples, a truck axle -- all standard forensics clues -- would have been vaporized in the explosion. Only two primary pieces of evidence would remain: radiation and isotopic signatures.

[Eddie01]

Tagline bump

[GOPJ]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1992379/posts

Similar type story - maybe something is going on...

[singfreedom]

Thank you, thank you for your sincere concern. It is always a relief for Americans to meet a foreign national that honestly wishes us, the U.S., well. It just doesn't seem to happen very often-—which makes it the more appreciated!