The hunt is on for the source of low level radiation detected in the atmosphere "across Europe" over the past several days, nuclear officials said today. Trace amounts of iodine-131, a type of radiation created during the operation of nuclear reactors or in the detonation of a nuclear weapon, were detected by the Czech Republic's State Office for Nuclear Safety starting two weeks ago. After the group reported its findings to the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Agency released a statement today revealing similar detections had been made "in other locations across Europe." The IAEA said the current levels of iodine-131 are not high enough to warrant a public health risk, but the agency still does not know the origin of the apparent leak and an official with the agency would not say where exactly it has been detected outside the Czech Republic. The IAEA said it does not believe the radiation was left over from the nuclear disaster at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi plant in March and the Czech Republic's State Office for Nuclear Safety could only say the source was "likely outside the territory of the [Czech] Republic." "Anywhere spent nuclear fuel is handled, there is a chance that... iodine-131 will escape into the environment," the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says on its website. According to the EPA, iodine-131 can get into the environment after leaking from cracked fuel rods in nuclear plants and, when ingested in higher doses, can lead to thyroid problems. This particular type of radiation is relatively short-lived, with an estimated half-life of about eight days. Mystery Radiation Detected 'Across Europe' - Yahoo! News
With security in general so lax in Eastern Europe, it could be anywhere. I just hope it isn't from material being transported for nefarious reasons...... "dirty bombs" can be so..... dirty.
With all the shakeups in the midddle east countless weooans are unaccounted for. Hope its none of those bering bought and sold.
The last I heard there was still several (about 16?) backpack styles the USSR used to have that are still unaccounted for. Wouldn't surprise me one bit if some "organization" wasn't busy combining a couple of them into something more than a localized boom.
Well we know that it is a very recent release, as iodine-131, is a very short lived isotope, I think 8 days Half-life. Strange no one has owned up, to the release yet, and it has to be an ACTIVE Open Air Reaction to have it be iodine-131. This stuff just doesn't float around, it must be in the High Atmosphere to get carried very far.
