Weapons of Mass Destruction WMD
Nuclear & Radiological
By Carl Hospedales
Sir! May I interest you in a second-hand Tactical Nuclear War-head (TNW), SS-1 Scud B or a SS-4 Sandal, honest sir it’s never been used, and it can be yours if the price is right… Sounds laughable, unfortunately it’s highly probable, with the demise of the former Soviet Block and the end of the cold war, poor management of these weapons and the possibility of unemployed or underpaid nuclear technicians being tempted to illegally sell nuclear material to terrorist groups and rogue states. These devices have a high probability of being utilised in terrorist attacks, with poorly guarded borders and poorly managed and funded customs procedures at our ports, read the article from Canadian Press dated 5 Aug 04, about Quebec and New York, recently published in the IAASP News Bulletin for the 9 August 2004. Searching a sea container port for a WMD hidden within a 10 gallon drum, which is hidden within a container, can be liked to looking for a needle in the hay stack. This problem is only now being slowly addressed nearly 3 years since 9-11. We are fortunate that the terrorist have not exploited this gap to its full potential. These gaps are making it all too easy for these weapons to be accessible on the international black market through second and third parties and bought for the right price.
For those readers with no military or weapons back ground with Nuclear, Biological & Chemical (NBC). What is a Tactical Nuclear Weapon? They are explosive devices born from the Cold war era, varying from land mines, and artillery shells, small airdropped bombs to short range missiles. The nuclear yields range from relatively low (0.1 kiloton (KT) to higher yields of those bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki (10-15 KT, upwards to 1 megaton). Even a very low-yield atomic blast would create highly damaging effects, above and beyond what a conventional explosion of the same size could produce. Furthermore, because these war heads are smaller in size, and because of the manner which they are safeguarded and deployed, are more susceptible to theft or being lost (Yes you can loose nuclear war heads!)
Types of Burst
Exo-Atmospheric: Nuclear explosion above 30,000 metres causes disruption to the ionosphere and thus to communication systems. (Considering most of our current communications are now via satellites, this is an effective, indirect form of attack.)
Endo-Atmospheric: Nuclear explosion within the atmosphere causes disruption to the communication systems and accelerates the radiation over a greater area due to the winds at higher altitudes.
Air-Burst: An airburst produces a powerful blast wave and secondary wave twice as powerful as a ground burst. Tactical nuclear weapons are most likely to be set for low airburst to optimize the blast effects. Very little residual radiation (fallout) is caused but rain out might occur.
Ground-Burst: A ground-burst explodes on or near the ground forming a crater and producing radioactive fallout.
Sub-Surface Burst: A sub-surface device is detonated below the surface of earth or water. Strong shock waves are formed. Intense fallout is caused if the fireball rises above the surface.
Effects of Nuclear Explosions
Immediate Effects
• Blinding flash.
• Intense heat.
• Shock and blast pulse from the centre of explosion followed by a negative pressure wave back towards centre of explosion causing “Push Pull” effect.
• Electro-magnetic phenomena which could short out electrical equipment if not protected and may cause major disruption to radar and radio transmissions.
• Initial radiation consisting of:
? Neutrons.
? Gamma rays.
• Initial radiation passing through electrical equipment may cause Transient Effects on Electronics (TREE).
Residual Effects
Residual radiation consists of Neutron Induced Activity (NIA) and fallout. NIA is contamination remaining in the ground around the Ground Zero (Usually up to 1.5Km distance depending on the yield of the device.)
Dirt drawn up with the fireball will be contaminated and when it falls to ground will form radioactive fallout. This radiation can be spread for hundreds of miles from the Ground Zero by upper atmospheric winds (Remember Chernobyl). Local concentrations of radioactivity may form when rainfall has increased the fallout level. Two types of radiation of significance are present in the radioactive dust particles in fallout these are:
• Beta Particles. Beta particles have a range of a few metres. They will not penetrate beyond skin unless the individual has uncovered cuts or abrasions. However, they will cause “Beta Burns” if left on unprotected skin. They are dangerous if inhaled or swallowed. Earth or light metals can stop them.
• Gamma Rays. Gamma rays are highly penetrating and hazardous. They can be progressively reduced by dense material such as lead, earth or concrete.
Residual radiation will be reduced by:
• Time.
• Shielding.
• Distance.
Nuclear Immediate Action Drill.
If you are unable to gain cover and you are caught out in the open when the explosion occurs you must follow the Nuclear Immediate Action (IA) drill on sensing the flash effect. The sequence is detailed below:
• Shut your eyes.
• Drop to ground.
• Place your hands under your body.
• Remain flat until the Heat and both the Positive & Negative blast wave have passed over you.
With countries such as Iran, Pakistan and North Korea, all having a nuclear capability and currently having problems within the global community, it is not beyond probability for such material to go missing or reallocated and once again ends up in the wrong hands. The low tech variation to a TNW is a Dirty Bomb.
Dirty Bomb.
A “dirty bomb” or radiological dispersal device (RDD) is a conventional explosive or bomb containing radioactive materials. Dirty bombs are conventional explosives with radioactive materials designed to disperse a hazardous and less then lethal amounts of radioactive material over a general area. It is important to note that a dirty bomb is NOT a nuclear bomb and does not involve a nuclear explosion. Any type of radioactive material could be used in a dirty bomb. In general these devices would be unlikely to cause serious health effects beyond those caused by the initial detonation of the device. (See diagram)
Material for a Dirty Bomb such as the Radioactive materials, are available from various sources Hospitals (Caesium 137) Factories (Cobalt 60) and Universities (Strontium 90) With the general availability of hand held GPS it is now even easier to remote detonate and explosive device. (Read the IAC Bulletin 127, July 8th, 2004, from the Office of the attorney General for New Jersey, USA) Explosives can be either home made or from quarry sites, not known for good security, and as for the container you can find 10 gallon drums around your local area.
This dirty bomb configuration above could in theory, be used for a TNW, which would then raise the situation to an entire different level. For such devices various scenarios have been trained for such as the recent exercises in California concerning shipping container on a boat in one of the major ports in North America. Remembering in one port alone One million containers go through the port of Montreal, Canada.
What can we do to combat this threat; in the military we had a saying Train Hard and Fight Easy that is what can be done. Contingency planning! Planning for the worst case nightmare, then practice our contingency Emergency Procedures on a regular basis, at local, state/province and national level, more than once or twice a year. Good communications, not being afraid to make mistakes or try some other new type of procedure. In training you have the luxury of making a mistake; in reality you don’t get a second chance. The contingency plans we have in place should be an automatic response not a response that has someone leafing through a book, looking at what he or they should be doing next. In our worst case scenario not only is the WMD our enemy but time itself, well rehearsed procedures helps to reduce the response time. Some one once said “The price of peace is constant vigilance” what should be added to that is “Complacency will kill you in the end”.
Carl Hospedales currently instructs lectures and writes for international civilian Police and Security Services on Terrorism, Executive Protection, Body Armour seminars and Firearms. As a Security & Aviation Consultant, with 25 years of training & experience, he provides Security, training, management and design & analysis in: Firearms, Less-Lethal weapons, Terrorism, Executive/Dignitary Protection, Use of Force, Weapons of Mass destruction (WMD) / Nuclear Biological and Chemical (NBC) and Risk Analysis. Within Aviation he provides management, design & analysis in: Air Operations both fix wing and rotary, Aviation Safety & Security, Emergency Response and Electronic Communications.