Because some people don’t seem to be clear on what one is, let’s review.
There are some materials that are radioactive. That is, they produce radioactive particles like neutrons, alpha particles, beta particles, and gamma rays. Those can be hazardous. However, these materials are not capable of causing a nuclear explosion.
A dirty bomb is a bomb made using conventional explosives, but the explosion merely scatters radioactive substances across a wide area. The bomb itself isn’t more dangerous than any other bomb, except that is used to scatter this radioactive material. Although the radioactivity is hazardous, the chief effect of such a bomb is to instill fear in people.
A dirty bomb is not a nuclear bomb. A nuclear bomb creates an explosion that is millions of times more powerful than a dirty bomb. The cloud of radiation from a nuclear bomb could spread thousands of square miles, whereas a dirty bomb’s radiation could be dispersed within a few blocks or miles of the explosion.
Any explosion that occurs in your area may be caused by a dirty bomb. The only way to know if a bomb has dispersed radioactive material (is “dirty”) is to have some sort of radiation monitoring device like a NucAlert or other radiation monitoring device that will alert you to the presence of the radiation.
In general, protection from radiation is afforded by:
- Minimizing the time exposed to radioactive materials;
- Maximizing the distance from the source of radiation; and
- Shielding from external exposure, and inhaling or ingesting radioactive material.
If you were in the immediate area of the explosion, do not eat, drink or smoke. If you have an N95, gas, or other respiratory protection mask, put it on. Even a bandana tied over the nose and mouth will help. Anything that will minimize your ingestion and inhalation of radioactive material is a good thing.
Get out of the immediate area of the explosion quickly. Wash yourself, your family, and any possessions down with water spray. This is called gross decontamination. Remember that runoff from this washdown is likely contaminated with radioactive materials.
The goal is to stop the radioactive material from harming you. Most radioactive products scattered by a dirty bomb are easily stopped as long as you don’t inhale or ingest them, and get them off of your skin.
The big threat from a dirty bomb is the public and government reaction to them.
14 Comments
Jonathan · August 18, 2022 at 1:05 am
If a nuclear weapon malfunctions and doesn’t go critical, in industry terms a “fizzle”, it becomes a dirty bomb.
This can also happen if a nuclear bomb is involved in a fire.
Divemedic · August 18, 2022 at 4:36 pm
A malfunction is not what we are talking about here. No one purposely designs a fizzle.
Big Ruckus D · August 18, 2022 at 3:03 am
The severity of the actual damage from an dirty bomb is dependent on two things. One is how powerful and effective the conventional explosive is. The second is how much and how “hot” the nuclear mateial is. The first dictates how much penetration (of structures, vehicles etc.) and spread can occur. The second determines how severe the contamination – and thereby longterm damage – is inflicted.
If the payload (nuclear material) is sufficiently large in quantity, and of isotopes that are most harmful to human health, not only can property be contaminated beyond any hope of effectve cleanup and return to use, but can cauee severe long term health problems. As Tom Petty said, the waiting is the hardest part. And once you’ve been gotten in such an attack, you are waiting to see how badly the long term outcome will be. Now that is some next level terror, since it is arguably worse than instant death, and plays out over potentially many years.
As you observed though, the real score for the perp is the guaranteed public and govt hysterical overreaction to what would lilkely be a less radioactively dangerous device. People will lose their shit over a threat that is largely invisible to detection by their own senses (specialized instrumentation being required to “see” the contamination). Kind of like they did with covid. Which makes it a perfect candidate for use in a false flag, as it will open the door to an entirely new level of govt overreach due to its raw emotional impact, while its physical impact is apt to be underwhelming, in reality.
Jonesy · August 18, 2022 at 8:18 am
Aside from the feds trying to pin something on conservatives being the main goal, the area of impact would be pretty minimal – a few square blocks to maybe a square mile in a heavy population center? Maybe in a key area like Wall Street or somewhere in DC?
With Covid, the area of effect was nationwide, and with compliant governors and mayors, the government overrreach was easily executed.
How a local false flag event like a dirty bomb leads to widespread government crackdown is hard for me to envision. Unless they use that to warn of pending follow-on attacks and have to lock down major cities, but that would be a lot to sell.
Divemedic · August 18, 2022 at 8:31 am
I am not sure that I see what the endgame is either. Perhaps working to declare Trump and his supporters a terrorist organization?
Jonesy · August 18, 2022 at 2:36 pm
They definitely want to stop him from running, I guess declaring him a terrorist on top of that would be icing on the cake. Maybe the terrorist plot is plan B.
I keep thinking that if the raid doesn’t produce something they can indict him on, and something like this dirty bomb false flag doesn’t work, they would just assassinate him. But that would likely make him a martyr. It’s tough speculating, but they surely have something in mind.
Multiple Simultaneous · August 18, 2022 at 8:47 am
Your line of thought implies that there will be multiple simultaneous false flag dirty bombs to trigger a widespread government crackdown.
Big Ruckus D · August 18, 2022 at 9:05 am
I think you underestimate the mileage the govt, with the assistance of their propoganda arm, the media, can get from a local attack. After all, mass shootings with “assault weapons” (their term, not mine) are inherently local events with a clearly delineated amount of immediately known damage, unlike a dirty bomb and it’s horror inducing pychological impact on “normal” people.
The day afer a dirty bomb attack happens, every erstwhile masktard in the country will be hyperventilating over what they perceive as a high probability event in their own back yard. To quote Hans Gruber “you ask for a miracle, I give you the fbi”. And they will be squealing like stuck pigs for big daddy govt to save them.
Point being, mass shooitngs have cynically enabled fresh gun control legislation and an open lawfare attack on gun manufacturers just within this year, despite being local, relatively small scale disasters. And again, once the shooting stops, the full extent of the damage is pretty clearly evident versus the potential and not immediately apparent long term impacts of a dirty bomb detonation, which creates exceptional levels of FUD.
WIll agree with DM though that I’m not sure what the endgame really is with this, except that in the most general sense the govt will use it to their maximum advantage to further violate constitutional protections. They are talking about it happening (setting the stage, as it were), so clearly it is a bogeyman they think can be exploited to some end they consider useful.
Therefore · August 18, 2022 at 6:24 am
Two notes. There is a class of nuclear devices that are called dirty. These are either designed to cause excess nuclear contamination or were badly designed so cause excess nuclear contamination.
These are sometimes conflated with conventual bombs designed to spread nuclear contamination.
One of the horror stories of the bombing of Hiroshima was that some of the survivors were badly burned and many were dehydrated. When it started to rain after these victims went into the rain and drank it.
The rain water was heavily contaminated.
Divemedic · August 18, 2022 at 7:55 am
Not the same thing. I am intentionally avoiding that conversation because the left is trying to convince the public that some kind of “nuclear secret” are needed to build a dirty bomb, and the insinuation is that Trump provided it. This tactic is reminiscent of the “assault rifle=machine gun” ploy.
nick flandrey · August 18, 2022 at 9:24 am
This pdf details the official guidance for a response. In addition to some interesting info, it’s likely to be the playbook for some localities, and completely ignored by others.
Always worth knowing what the plan is.
http://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/documents/fema_nuc-detonation-planning-guide.pdf
And it wasn’t just NYFC, the page at FEMA was updated march 7, 2022
https://www.ready.gov/nuclear-explosion
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Drunk In Their Sin · August 18, 2022 at 11:15 am
A soft neurotic society of weak worldlings will be pounced upon by enemies foreign and domestic while falling for anything on teevee or regurgitated from the social media hive.
Being prepared is much more difficult than being scared.
The Russian suitcase nukes and uranium being sold by a certain Long March fellow traveler were for this time.
Danny's not here · August 18, 2022 at 4:47 pm
By God you’re a poet!
Grey Mobius · August 18, 2022 at 2:27 pm
Watch the “Dirty War” BBC/HBO movie from 2004 details a group of Muslim terrorists making dirty bombs to be set off in downtown London and how they were tracked down
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