Michele Kearney's Nuclear Wire

Saturday, July 31, 2010

U.S. Military Learns to Fight Deadliest Weapons * By Adam Higginbotham

Detonation of a MICLIC to destroy a 1km in dep...

The tactics of today's insurgent bombmakers are the product of a long-simmering melting pot of global terrorism.
Photo: Tom Schierlitz; IED models: Based on actual bombs constructed by Prop House Weapons Specialists Ltd.

Nuclear Forensics Skill Is Declining in U.S., Report Says

Image via CrunchBase

Photo from European Commission Joint Research Centre

Nuclear Forensics Skill Is Declining In U.S., Report Says -- New York Times

The nation’s ability to identify the source of a nuclear weapon used in a terrorist attack is fragile and eroding, according to a report released Thursday by the National Research Council.

Such highly specialized detective work, known as nuclear attribution, seeks to study clues from fallout and radioactive debris as a way to throw light on the identity of the attacker and the maker of the weapon. In recent years, federal officials have sought to improve such analytic skills, arguing that nuclear terrorism is a grave, long-term threat to the nation.

Read more ....http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/30/us/30nuke.html?src=me

Friday, July 30, 2010

Governors ask Congress to bolster funding for nuclear projects

The Western Governors' Association called on members of Congress to approve a $36 billion increase in the federal loan-guarantee program for nuclear energy, as requested in President Barack Obama's budget for fiscal 2011. In a letter to the House and Senate appropriations committees, the governors wrote that the additional funds would help cover the cost of building several reactors. http://PowerGenWorldwide.com

US to press China, UAE, others on Iran sanctions

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/US_to_press_China_UAE_others_on_Iran_sanctions_999.html The United States announced Thursday that top officials will fan out starting next week to China, the United Arab Emirates, and other key countries in support of tighter sanctions against Iran. "China is of concern to us in this regard," Robert Einhorn, the US State Department's special adviser for nonproliferation and arms control, told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
Einhorn said he and Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes Daniel Glaser would visit China at the "end of August" as part of a push to "raise this at the highest levels."
"We need for them to enforce the Security Council resolutions conscientiously and we also need for them not to 'backfill' when responsible countries have distanced themselves from Iran," he said.
http://www.spacewar.com/reports/US_to_press_China_UAE_others_on_Iran_sanctions_999.html

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Nations Said to Court A.Q. Khan Associates

A number of foreign governments could be attempting to recruit some former members of the proliferation ring once operated by Pakistani nuclear weapons scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan, the Washington Times reported yesterday (see GSN, March 25).

This has caused some concern in the U.S. intelligence community about the potential for the nuclear black market operation to be reconstituted.
Two sources from U.S. spy agencies and other officials familiar with reports on the matter said intelligence collected since early 2010 indicates that operatives from multiple foreign nations have reached out to engineers, scientists and money-men who were involved with the disbanded nuclear smuggling network. Those countries reportedly include Brazil, Iran, Myanmar, Nigeria, North Korea, Sudan and Syria.
"They have propositioned them to get them to come out of retirement," a high-ranking U.S. intelligence officer said.

Nuke-smuggling network in demand Agents seek to lure group 'out of retirement'

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/jul/28/nuke-smuggling-network-in-demand/

Official: U.K. is considering civil nuclear exports to India

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100728-714234.html?mod=dist_smartbrief
The U.K. government may ship its civil nuclear technology and knowledge to India despite earlier concerns that the nation is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, said Business Secretary Vince Cable. "There are sensitivities we are conscious of, as are the Indian government, but within those constraints, we want to really push ahead with civil nuclear cooperation," he said. The Wall Street Journal/Dow Jones Newswires

Constellation wants progress on loan guarantee for Md. project

http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bs-bz-constellation-earnings-20100728,0,5646592.story?track=rss
Mayo Shattuck, CEO of Constellation Energy Group, said failure to secure a federal loan guarantee for the planned expansion of the Calvert Cliffs power station by summer's end could put the project at risk. The delay has started to hinder the possibilities for the Maryland project, Shattuck said, adding that the company has been forced to reduce spending. "We can't keep going at the rate that we're going without clarity on the loan guarantee," he added. The Sun (Baltimore)

N.M. uranium-enrichment plant will expand

http://www.oaoa.com/news/uranium-50655-plant-enrichment.html
Urenco USA has secured $1 billion from its parent company to construct a second phase of its uranium-enrichment facility in New Mexico, with the possibility of adding more phases. Once the second phase is completed in 2014, the plant could provide enrichment services for 50% of the fuel for the country's nuclear plants. "The whole idea is we will continue to expand as long as our orders and the economy and the marketplace allow that," said spokesman Don Johnson. Odessa American (Texas) (7/28)

US appeals court puts consideration of Yucca Mountain case on hold

A US appeals court said Wednesday it would wait until the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission rules on the Yucca Mountain appeal before the commission
before it hears oral arguments in a lawsuit over the planned termination of
the nuclear waste repository project.

http://www.platts.com/RSSFeedDetailedNews.aspx?xmlpath=RSSFeed/HeadlineNews/Nuclear/6222706.xml

Obama's Nuke Treaty Is MAD - Sen. Jim DeMint, National Review

Obama's Nuke Treaty Is MAD - Sen. Jim DeMint, National Reviewhttp://article.nationalreview.com/438845/the-treaty-is-mad/jim-demint

Nuclear Plants Operate At Exceptional Levels To Stabilize Grid

Nuclear Plants Operate At Exceptional Levels To Stabilize Grid
http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.com/reports/Nuclear_Plants_Operate_At_Exceptional_Levels_To_Stabilize_Grid_999.html

Washington DC (SPX) Jul 13, 2010 As the Eastern United States suffered through record-breaking triple-digit temperatures threatening brownouts and blackouts, the nation's nuclear power plants posted an average operating capacity of 97 percent July 4-7. Eighty-five reactors across the country ran at 100 percent operating capacity during the entire week. One hundred two of the nation's 104 nuclear power plants were operatio ... more

Paris wants EDF and Areva to join forces

http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.com/reports/Paris_wants_EDF_and_Areva_to_join_forces_999.html The French government has called for closer cooperation between utility EDF and reactor maker Areva to help the country regain its leadership in the nuclear power sector. Such closer cooperation would increase France's chances to win reactor contracts abroad, French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde said Wednesday. "There must be a strategic partnership between Areva and EDF each time that it's necessary for exports," Lagarde told French radio station RTL. "Our two big nuclear champion ... read more

Russia, Afghanistan and Starwars: Westward Hu by Eric Walberg / July 28th, 2010

President Obama & Russian President Medvedev

Image by talkradionews via Flickr

The Atlantists are on the ascendant these days in Moscow. Russian President Dmitri Medvedev’s hamburger lunch with United States President Barack Obama during his visit to Silicon Valley last month apparently left a pleasant taste in his mouth. Now relations with NATO are on the mend, as Russia plans to send 27 Mi-17 helicopters to Afghanistan, NATO Military Committee Chairman, Giampaolo di Paola, said after a meeting with Chief of Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, Nikolai Makarov, last Friday. Rosoboronexport has even offered to throw in the first three helicopters for free.
Makarov went further, telling di Paola …

(Full article …)

Moscow faces energy challenge
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev is pressing for the country to improve its energy efficiency. Yet with US$92 billion needed merely to upgrade the aging power grid, the cost will be high - and private investment likely to be scarce. - Sergei Blagov
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/LG30Ag01.html

S.Korea, US end drills as N.Korea hails war "victory"

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/SKorea_US_end_drills_as_NKorea_hails_war_victory_999.html
Seoul (AFP) July 28, 2010 - A full-scale US and South Korean military exercise designed to deter North Korea ended without incident Wednesday despite Pyongyang's threats of possible nuclear retaliation. The two allies, who accuse the North of a deadly submarine attack on a South Korean warship, said they staged the four-day naval and air exercise to send a "clear message" that any future provocations would not be toler ... more

Vinson Uploads And Launches Missiles For Qualifications

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Vinson_Uploads_And_Launches_Missiles_For_Qualifications_999.html
USS Carl Vinson, At Sea (SPX) Jul 29, 2010 - USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) uploaded and launched Evolved Sea Sparrow Surface Missiles (ESSM) and Rolling Airframe Missiles (RAM) July 16 and 17 to support Combat Systems Ship's Qualification Trials (CSSQT). This is the first time Vinson has had missiles on board since the completion of a five-year refueling complex overhaul. "It's part of the qualifications for Combat Systems to test i ... more

Truck-borne laser weapon to be on way soon

Image via Wikipedia

Washington (UPI) Jul 28, 2010 - A powerful laser weapon that can fit on a light truck is set to be the military's answer to the dilemma of overreacting to enemy attack and harming friendly forces in the process. The laser-beam weapon, being developed by the U.S. Army and Boeing, is seen to be a more focused alternative to artillery or rocket response to enemy action that usually results in innocent civilians or friend ... more
http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Truck-borne_laser_weapon_to_be_on_way_soon_999.html

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Obama Halt to Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Site Slammed James Rosen, McClatchy Newspapers:

"Congress was warned Tuesday that the failure to build the planned Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository in Nevada could delay licensing of the country's first new nuclear power plants in a generation."
Read the Article
http://www.truth-out.org/obama-halt-yucca-mountain-nuclear-waste-site-slammed61782

B&W to build mPower test facility from World Nuclear News by Jeremy Gordon

Babcock & Wilcox is to construct a test facility for the mPower reactor design in Bedford County, Virginia. The facility - not far from B&W's headquarters in Lynchburg - will be used to support licensing activities for the small, modular reactor design.