International Nuclear Watch & Discussion

JE Menon · Post by **JE Menon** » 09 Feb 2009 16:48

>>A signal lesson for India too,that our enemies have been spying and attacking ous relentlessly

And our "friends"...

that's the fun part of it all. I suspect we are not simply juggling our cojones either.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 10 Feb 2009 05:02

U.S. Reportedly Conducting Nuclear Research at British Site

The United States is secretly conducting nuclear warhead research at the United Kingdom's top nuclear-weapon laboratory, the London Guardian reported today

"There are some capabilities that the U.K. has that we don't have and that we borrow ... that I believe we have been able to exploit and\] that's been very valuable to us," U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration policy and planning head John Harvey said. As one example, he described "dual-axis hydrodynamic" studies that use computers to simulate conditions in a detonating nuclear warhead

US using British atomic weapons factory for its nuclear programme

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 10 Feb 2009 05:34

U.S. Skeptical About Pakistan's Restrictions on Nuclear Scientist

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 11 Feb 2009 03:22

Obama Dodges Question on Israeli Nuclear Capability

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 11 Feb 2009 04:55

The Russian Nuclear Industry's Annual Beauty Competition for its Employees
Miss Atom 2009

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 11 Feb 2009 07:08

Our Nuclear Nightmare :: Henry A. Kissinger

sanjaykumar · Post by **sanjaykumar** » 11 Feb 2009 09:10

Parallel consultations are imperative with China, India and Pakistan. It must be understood that the incentives for nuclear weapons on the Subcontinent are more regional than those of the established nuclear powers and their threshold for using them considerably lower.

From the above.

Kissinger never did manage to understand Indians.

Jayram · Post by **Jayram** » 11 Feb 2009 10:26

Kissinger is upto his old tricks .
Here is the first comment from that article

Isn't it strange how the one country that Kissinger neglects to mention is Israel? Should one suppose that the fact has something to do with his role in their acquiring the bomb? Although Kissinger, under Nixon, had a statutory responsibillity to reign in nuclear proliferation, he acquiesced and stalled until Israel got the bomb. He dalyed and obfuscated and gave them the time they needed. And thanks to that the United States has no moral authority to speak to Iran on the matter of proliferation.

There is a word for Kissinsger's fiddle faddling, without which Israel never would have gotten the bomb. It is called treason.

Arya Sumantra · Post by **Arya Sumantra** » 12 Feb 2009 03:32

Toshiba Boosts Presence in Uranium Production

Toshiba Corp.'s move to purchase a 19.95% stake in a Canadian miner together with two other Japanese firms is the latest example of a nuclear-reactor builder expanding into uranium production.

The purchase, which is for about 270 million Canadian dollars (US$216.7 million), will give Toshiba the right to roughly 8% of uranium produced by the Canadian miner, Uranium One. Toshiba hopes to then sell this uranium to customers for whom it builds nuclear power plants.

Toshiba owns nuclear power plant builder Westinghouse Electric Co. LLC, whose technology is used in about half of the world's operating nuclear power plants.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 13 Feb 2009 04:07

69 computers missing from nuclear weapons lab

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 13 Feb 2009 04:53

THE COST OF THE US NUCLEAR DETERRENT ENTERPRISE, PART II

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 13 Feb 2009 04:57

Better safe than sorry

Mr Krepon, a radical but no dove, counsels caution: zero may yet prove a better guide for the journey than a destination. Disarmament, like nuclear abstinence in the first nuclear age, has to be a rational calculation, not an act of faith;

Pranay · Post by **Pranay** » 13 Feb 2009 08:43

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor ... =100601170

The A.Q. Khan release saga. The embedded audio file would be a good candidate for archiving on BR...

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 15 Feb 2009 17:56

U.S. Ahead of Moscow Treaty Schedule in Reducing Its Nuclear Arsenal

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 15 Feb 2009 18:27

Silly Canadians don't know what Tritium is for

Wal-Mart's glow-in-the-dark mystery

Last month Wal-Mart disclosed that about 15,800 of its exit signs – a stunning 20 per cent of its total inventory – are lost, missing, or otherwise unaccounted for at 4,500 facilities in the United States and Puerto Rico.

The signs contain tritium gas ... produced as a by-product from the operation of Canadian-made Candu nuclear reactors.

pgbhat · Post by **pgbhat** » 15 Feb 2009 18:44

Gerard wrote:Silly Canadians don't know what Tritium is for

JDAMs can be shoplifted from wal-mart?

PratikDas · Post by **PratikDas** » 16 Feb 2009 12:07

British, French nuclear subs crash in Atlantic

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 16 Feb 2009 18:55

2 SSBNs no less
Nuclear submarines collide in Atlantic

A Royal Navy nuclear submarine and a French vessel have been damaged in a collision deep below the surface of the Atlantic Ocean.

HMS Vanguard and Le Triomphant, which were carrying nuclear missiles, are believed to have collided while submerged on 3 or 4 February, according to reports

Amber G. · Post by **Amber G.** » 16 Feb 2009 23:49

From story posted by Gerard:

In 2005, SRB Technologies got permission from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission to export 70,000 of its tritium exit signs to Iran. Foreign Affairs Canada blasted the regulator for allowing shipment to a country that's attempting to develop weapons of mass destruction. The shipment went through.

(BTW, H3 is also commonly used in some gun sights - to make it visible in night)

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 17 Feb 2009 02:25

BBC

Are Scientists Finally About to Make Nuclear Fusion Work?

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 18 Feb 2009 05:54

U.S. Requires New Nuclear Reactors to Withstand Plane Crashes

NRC adopts 1 million year rule for Yucca Mountain

The NRC kept the EPA's rule of limiting the dose of radiation to 15 millirem for the first 10,000 years after disposal. Now, the NRC has adopted the EPA's limit of 100 millirem from 10,001 years to 1 million years.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 18 Feb 2009 05:56

Clinton calls North Korea nuclear ambitions 'disruptive'

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 18 Feb 2009 05:59

The U.S. Deployment of Nuclear Weapons in 1950s South Korea and North Korea's Nuclear Development: Toward the Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula

link

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 18 Feb 2009 06:02

Obama Moving on Nuclear Arms Control Pledges, Expert Says

Johann · Post by **Johann** » 18 Feb 2009 06:44

Sanjay M wrote:
BBC

Are Scientists Finally About to Make Nuclear Fusion Work?

For those excited by science fiction, take a look at inertial electrostatic confinement. Robert Bussard, of the Bussard ramscoop fame, and later in charge of all fusion programmes at the US Atomic Energy Commission believed it was the only approach to fusion that would produce a useful energy surplus. In fact he actually declared that the AEC in his time never expected much of the tokamak or laser ignition - they were only supported to generate support and interest in fusion as a whole - he also went on to say that unfortunately their successors at the DoE wholeheartedly believed in the tokamak and laser ignition while starving other approaches. That's why the US Navy funds the IEC research in to the polywell at a very modest level - anything larger and the DoE will demand control, and then proceed to kill it.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 18 Feb 2009 10:55

Gerard wrote:U.S. Requires New Nuclear Reactors to Withstand Plane Crashes

NRC adopts 1 million year rule for Yucca Mountain
The NRC kept the EPA's rule of limiting the dose of radiation to 15 millirem for the first 10,000 years after disposal. Now, the NRC has adopted the EPA's limit of 100 millirem from 10,001 years to 1 million years.

The perils of globalization. In the old days the only hazards that US plants had to worry about was telephone poles being flung by tornadoes while European plants had to deal with airplane hazards! While the former causes perforation, th latter causes the ctnmt bldg to ring like a bell and then comes fire hazard if there is breach or outside crash.

Shivani · Post by **Shivani** » 20 Feb 2009 10:07

How Long Before Uranium Shortages?

The Oil Drum wrote:
Figure 5. EWG World Production vs Demand

The Oil Drum wrote:Adding new mines takes a long time--one often sees 8 to 10 years quoted as a reasonable time frame. Production in 2007 was only 41,000 metric tons, so increasing production by 30,000 metric tons would represent a 73% increase. This doesn't seem to be happening.

The Oil Drum wrote:What does seem to be happening is a grab for available mines by countries like China and Japan. These countries will be needing fuel for nuclear reactors and cannot see good long-term sources of supply. For example, Ranger is the second largest mine in the world, representing 11% of 2007 world production. The Japanaese are trying to get a controlling interest in Ranger and in other mines, according to Japan: Securing Uranium Supply.

China has also been trying to invest in mines. It has been having discussions with BHP Billiton, operator of Olympic Dam in Australia.

The Oil Drum wrote:The US is very dependent on foreign imports, as shown in Figure 7, especially recycled Russian bomb material, which currently makes up 50% of nuclear fuel. Since about 20% of US electricity is from uranium, this means that 10% of our electricity supply is obtained from recycled Russian bombs. Most of the remainder of our nuclear electric supply is from other overseas sources. With current world financial problems, one wonders how secure these sources are. Also, we will need to find additional sources when the Russian bomb contract runs out it 2013.

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 20 Feb 2009 18:57

Iran holds enough uranium for bomb

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 20 Feb 2009 23:33

Clinton: Nobody Knows Whether North Korea Had Uranium Program

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 20 Feb 2009 23:41

THE CHINA (PROLIFERATION) SYNDROME

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 21 Feb 2009 02:30

Russia hopes U.S. Congress will pass nuclear pact

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 21 Feb 2009 20:30

A Safe, Secure and Dwindling Arsenal

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 22 Feb 2009 17:47

Larijani: Depriving Iran of nuclear technology impossible

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 22 Feb 2009 23:53

South Korea calls for nuke-free peninsula

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 23 Feb 2009 03:29

Task force says StratCom is spread too thin

A Defense Department task force thinks the U.S. Strategic Command has taken on too many new missions that detract from its historic, vital role as leader of U.S. nuclear deterrence.