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Mini-Nukes: Truth or Consequences?
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Myth: Mini-nukes will allow destruction of deeply buried targets with
minimal "collateral" damage, and are needed to destroy stores
of chemical and biological weapons and deeply buried bunkers.
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- A low-yield nuclear weapon will not penetrate deep enough to contain the explosion.
A 0.1 kiloton warhead would have to penetrate over 230 feet underground to fully contain the explosion, yet the maximum practical depth is around 40 feet for a 10-foot bomb. Even at greater penetration, radiation would be forced back up the "chimney" created by the weapon. High-yield weapons would be required to destroy deeply buried targets.
- Radioactive fallout would likely be significant.
A 1-kiloton warhead exploding 20 feet underground would eject about one million cubic feet of radioactive debris and form a crater the size of ground zero at the World Trade Center. The radiation dose from the explosion could exceed 100 rads per hour (Acute radiation sickness begins at total dosages of 100-200 rads).
- Chemical and Biological materials will be spread, not destroyed, by bunker-busters.
Unless there were a direct hit on the underground bunker, the surrounding earth would absorb most of the heat from the explosion, such that biological or chemical agents would not be destroyed. Instead they would be dispersed into the surrounding area. Anthrax spread in this fashion may cause even more casualties than the resulting nuclear fallout.
- Mini-Nukes will not limit "collateral damage" (civilian injury and death).
Even a very low-yield nuclear weapon exploded in or near an urban environment will disperse radioactive dirt and debris over several square miles and could result in fatal doses of radiation to tens of thousands of civilians, as well as US military personnel in the area.
- New nuclear weapon development will encourage proliferation.
Countries may decide to counter the perceived threat from the United States by acquiring and testing their own weapons. Russia, China, India and Pakistan would likely resume testing.
- International Treaties will be compromised.
Testing new weapons will undermine the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, and violate the US's commitment to disarmament under the Non-Proliferation Treaty, reaffirmed in 1995, and upon which many non-nuclear weapon states condition their support for the treaty.
- Global security will be undermined.
Mini-nukes are designed to be tactical weapons for non-nuclear conflicts. They blur the line between conventional and nuclear weapons and lower the threshold for nuclear use
- The US is sending the wrong signal.
By returning to new weapon development and/or testing, the United States would signal that it is still interested in finding new uses for nuclear weapons especially low-yield tactical or battlefield weapons to be used in Third World conflicts,
-- All Nuclear Bombs are Dirty Bombs --
Useful Web Sites Dealing with Mini-Nukes:
spacedaily
miis
nukebbusters
clwcoalition
acronym
reportaboutface
downwinders commentary
nuclear-doctrine
contro nukebbusters
guardian
guardian story
weapons
NukeEPWs
siliconvalley
nuclearpolicy
physicstoday
janes press
commondreams
sciam.
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