AQ has briefcase nukes. WTF?
- Thread starter K.I.L.E.R
- Start date
Err, they are much smaller then a VW. Have you seen how a modern warhead looks like? And those are relatively high-yield, compared to a tactical .5-2KT device.
That said, I think the chance of Al-Qaida having such a device is 0. They are just trying spread panic.
That said, I think the chance of Al-Qaida having such a device is 0. They are just trying spread panic.
A quick google search turned up an article which makes a pretty convincing arguement that you could fit a nuclear bomb in a suitcase.
How many people live in Mexico City, NYC, Mumbai, Karachi, or Paris?K.I.L.E.R said:
K.I.L.E.R said:
Depends on where they detonate it. Get it in downtown Manhattan during business hours and 9/11 is a driveby shooting in comparison.
It would've been hard to ponder this decades ago but the world was safer during the bi-polarization of the Cold War.
Geeforcer and MfA,
The nuclear devices that I've read that can fit in a suitcase are radiological dispersion bombs, i.e. not a fusion or even a fission bomb. And that article you linked to MfA spoke about a suitcase nuke in theory, not necessarily reality.
AFAIK, you need about 100lbs of Uranium or 7lbs of Plutonium to make a nuclear device, barring the other electronics, casing, and radiation shielding. That imo does not lend itself well to a real briefcase nuke. Considering the difficulty in creating Plutonium, Uranium would seem to be the far easier radiological element to procure, especially if you're dealing with the black market.
The nuclear devices that I've read that can fit in a suitcase are radiological dispersion bombs, i.e. not a fusion or even a fission bomb. And that article you linked to MfA spoke about a suitcase nuke in theory, not necessarily reality.
AFAIK, you need about 100lbs of Uranium or 7lbs of Plutonium to make a nuclear device, barring the other electronics, casing, and radiation shielding. That imo does not lend itself well to a real briefcase nuke. Considering the difficulty in creating Plutonium, Uranium would seem to be the far easier radiological element to procure, especially if you're dealing with the black market.
Geeforcer said:
It wouldn't have happened.
And it's interesting to note that the current terrorism environment didn't arise until the Cold War's demise.
You've never seen my wife pack, have you?Natoma said:Can you carry 150lbs in a briefcase?[/EDIT]
Natoma said:
Read it wrong.
[EDIT]Ahh that was 60lbs for the warhead, without the casing, electronics, etc. Total weight was about 150lbs, which fits well considering they were using uranium.
Can you carry 150lbs in a briefcase?
I don't think terrorists would be particularly concerned with either timing electronics (keep in mind that "electronics of 1950s are not quite the same as electronics of today) or shielding. Plus, the warhead itself is obsolete. If anything, today devices of similar yield would be lighter then 60lb.
John Reynolds said:
Well, you could argue that the current situation where the idea of terrorists getting nukes on the black market has only become a possibility by the demise of the Soviet Union and the breakdown of law in Russia and it's satellites, I think that's about all the distance you could take it. Militant Islam was on the rise well before the end of the Cold War, and in some cases was brought about by it, and even used as an instrument in it. Afghanistan is a pretty well documented case, but it probably isn't the only one. In Iran, when the Shah was first overthrown, (himself an instrument of the Cold War), it wasn't just militant Shias who took over. There were actually two competing factions on relatively equal terms, a secular, left-leaning faction, and a religious right faction. Western Bloc countries, in particular the United States, were weary of supporting a regime that may have become Soviet friendly, and over a period of about a year or two after the Shah was overthrown, this made the leftists increasingly isolated, and allowed the ayatollah to rise to power. In Egypt as well, Islamic radicalism was took root in the mid to late 70's in part as a response to the dictatorial secular regime, propped up both by the Soviets and later the Americans. Heck, there's even evidence that Israel helped create Hamas in an attempt to undermine the PLO in the early 80's, which may not be as directly related to the Cold War as the others, it helps go to show that radical religious fundamentalism in fact had it's genesis before the end of the Cold War.
It wouldn't have too heh, and I'm not even talking about the radiation aspect(which could be bad).
I'm surprised terrorists didn't try to use flash bangs in time square on new years, you would have 2 people dead from the flash bangs and thousands dead from getting trampled. It's actually pretty fool proof....
Similar threads
- Deleted member 2197
- Graphics and Semiconductor Industry