nuclear weapons 101. “the nuclear bomb is the most anti-democratic, anti- human, outright evil...

Nuclear Weapons 101Nuclear Weapons 101

“The nuclear bomb is the most anti-democratic, anti-human, outright evil thing that man has ever made…

This world of ours is four thousand, six hundred million years old. It could end in an afternoon.”

Arundhati Roy

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The Current State The Current State of Nuclear of Nuclear WeaponsWeapons

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Nuclear weapons todayNuclear weapons today

• Between 21,300 and 30,000 nuclear warheads with the equivalent explosive force of:– 200,000 Hiroshima-sized bombs

(11 billion tons of TNT - 2 tons for every human on the planet).

• 5,000 ready to be launched in less than 30 minutes.

Tactical vs. strategic Tactical vs. strategic nuclear weaponsnuclear weapons

• Tactical: – US and Russian definition - less

than 500 km range.• Strategic:

– Intended to be detonated in other countries, i.e. intercontinental delivery.

Nuclear weapons -Declared Nuclear weapons -Declared statesstates

USA

Russia

France

China

Britain

7,000

6,000

450

400

185

TacticalStrategic

3,300

14,000

60

150

80

Nuclear weapons - Nuclear weapons - “Undeclared” states“Undeclared” states

Israel - 200 India - 60-80

Pakistan - 10-25

Mass destruction abilitiesMass destruction abilities

• 40+ states are nuclear capable.

• Chemical and biological weapons are the “poor man’s” Weapons of Mass Destruction.

Missile DefenseMissile Defense

• A proposed US system to shoot down long-range ballistic missiles in flight.

• $90 billion spent since 1983.• $60-100 billion more estimated

by the Clinton Administration.–Same amount could eradicate six

common diseases that kill 40,000 third world children every day.

Missile DefenseMissile Defense

• The US intends to withdraw from the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty on June 13, 2002.– The ABM prohibits deployment of a

missile defense system giving one side a strategic advantage.

• Breaking the ABM undermines the Non Proliferation Treaty

• “Canadian participation in the Missile Defense shield is more about maintaining good relations with the US than it is about protecting Canada.”

– Will Canada participate in MD?

– What will Canada have to pay?

Canada and Missile Canada and Missile DefenseDefense

US Nuclear Posture US Nuclear Posture ReviewReview

• 2002 report on the goals and structure of US nuclear forces.

• Asserted a permanent role for nuclear weapons in military policy into the future.– Goes against treaty commitments

for nuclear weapons elimination.

• Firmly committed to Missile Defense.

Nuclear Nuclear TerrorismTerrorism

Vulnerability of nuclear facilities?

Robert D

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Nuclear terrorismNuclear terrorism

Nuclear weapons materials are vulnerable to terrorists in many different countries because production and storage facilities are not adequately safeguarded.

Nuclear terrorismNuclear terrorism

• A crude but highly lethal nuclear device can be fabricated by a determined group if it can acquire quantities of highly enriched uranium or plutonium.

• Acquisition of fissile material by terrorists is a very real possibility.

Nuclear material Nuclear material availabilityavailability

• Fissile materials are not controlled or accounted for effectively.

• Only 1/3 of an estimated 600 tonnes of weapons-usable material in the former Soviet Union has been locked up.– At least 40 kg of weapons-usable

uranium and plutonium has been stolen.

Terrorism and nuclear Terrorism and nuclear energyenergy

• The International Atomic Energy Agency has confirmed that current nuclear power plants are structurally vulnerable against the Sept. 11 attack scenario.

• “Consequences of a direct hit from an airliner would be catastrophic.”

• There is also virtually no protection from the sabotage acts of an insider.

The BasicsThe Basics

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Nuclear weapon coresNuclear weapon cores

• Fission weapons require “fissile isotopes”.

• Most important - plutonium-239 (Pu-239) and uranium-235 (U-235).

• Some weapons are made from both isotopes.

• Basic nuclear weapons rely on nuclear fission chain reaction to produce large amount of energy in a very short time.

Nuclear explosionsNuclear explosions

• Explosive power measured by the mass equivalent of TNT:– A 1 kiloton bomb has an explosive

yield equivalent to 1000 tons of TNT.– A 1 megaton bomb has an explosive

yield equivalent to 1,000,000 tons of TNT.

– The Hiroshima bomb was 15 kilotons.

PlutoniumPlutonium

• Weapons grade - produced in military plutonium-production reactors specifically for nuclear weapons use.

• Reactor grade - produced in commercial nuclear-power reactors– For electricity production, but can be

used to make weapons.

Plutonium - environmental Plutonium - environmental impactimpact

• Production of a single kg of plutonium produces:– 1,300 L of high-level

radioactive waste.– 200,000 kg of low to

intermediate-level waste.– 10 million L of

contaminated cooling water.

• The half-life of plutonium is 24,000 years.

Sygma

UraniumUranium

• Naturally occurring uranium contains 0.7% U-235.

• Weapons use highly-enriched uranium (HEU) - proportion of U-235 increased.

• Weapons grade - usually enriched to greater than 90%, but lower percentages still useable.

Estimated plutonium Estimated plutonium stocksstocks

Country Military plutonium

Civil plutonium

Former SU 125 tons 40 tons

US 110 tons < 8 tons

UK 10 tons 50 tons

France 6 tons 80 tons

China 2 tons -

Israel 950 kg -

India 200-300 kg < 8 tons

Japan - 50 tons

Germany - 40 tons

Estimated HEU stocksEstimated HEU stocks

Country Military highly-enriched uranium

Former SU 1,000 tons

US 700 tons

UK 15 tons

France 15 tons

China 15 tons

Pakistan 150 kg

South Africa 360 kg

Core requirementsCore requirements

• A 20 kt nuclear bomb requires:– 4-5 kg of weapons grade plutonium

OR– 10-15 kg of weapons grade uranium.

• A 1kt nuclear weapon could be made with:– 1 kg of weapons-grade plutonium OR– 2.5 kg of weapons-grade uranium.

Delivery of nuclear Delivery of nuclear weaponsweapons

• Launched from submarines or land.• Delivered on artillery or ballistic or

cruise missiles.• Dropped from aircraft.

• Low technology such as trucks, small boats and cargo planes could also be used.

• A 1 or 2 kt device could be carried in a backpack.

The The Effects of Effects of Nuclear Nuclear

WeaponsWeapons

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Nuclear testingNuclear testing

• 2,045 nuclear test explosions by 8 countries.

• Estimated 49,000 deaths from radioactive fallout from testing in Nevada.

• Testing in the South Pacific has left islands uninhabitable and ruined for agriculture.– Islanders forced to leave

their homes.

Library of Congress

August 6, 1945August 6, 1945

• US detonated a 15 kiloton bomb over Hiroshima, Japan.

• Deaths - 118,661.• Injuries - 78,000.

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August 9, 1945August 9, 1945

• US detonated a 21 kiloton bomb over Nagasaki, Japan.

• Deaths - 73,884.• Injuries - 74,909.• 6.7 million square

metres leveled.

Somerville House Books, Ltd.

Hiroshima and NagasakiHiroshima and Nagasaki

• Ground temperatures reached about 7,000 degrees.

• “Black rain” containing radioactive fallout poured down for hours after the explosions.

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Band Distance from Ground

Zero

Area Average populatio

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Fatality rate

Total death

s

A 0-0.5 km 0.8 sq km 6,603 98% 6,471

B 0.5-1.0 km 2.3 sq km 18,985 90% 17,086

C 1.0-1.5 km 4.0 sq km 33,017 46% 15,188

D 1.5-2.0 km 5.65 sq km

45,398 23% 10,441

E 2.0-5.0 km 65.9 sq km

543,952 2% 10,879

Effects of a 12 kiloton bomb Effects of a 12 kiloton bomb New York CityNew York City

One-megaton bomb One-megaton bomb detonated in the airdetonated in the air

• Flash– Intense flash of light, a thousand

times brighter than lightning.– Pulse of heat radiation - sets fire to

combustible material 14 km away.– Pulse of X-rays, lethal within 3 km.


• Fireball– Forms after the ‘flash’ and rises in

the air.– Can permanently blind people up to

80 km away.– All exposed body parts burned

deeply within 10 km.– Superficial burns within fifteen km.


• Blast– Powerful blast wave - starts

immediately, but travels slower than the flash and fireball.

– Destroys everything within 2 km.– 100% fatalities within 3 km.– 50% of people killed within 8 km.– Major damage to buildings within

14 km, windows broken out to 20-30 km.


• Blast– Hurricane force winds, first

outwards, then inwards.– Tornado force winds (six hundred

km/hr), within four km - can drive glass splinters into people.

– People picked up and hurled into any object strong enough to be still standing.


• Firestorm– Fires started by the first flash

coalesce.– Cause sufficient updraft to form their

own wind, which blows inwards from all sides - increasing the intensity of the fire.

– Fire uses all available oxygen.– “People caught in the open would

melt, those in shelters would probably be baked.”

• Acute radiation exposure– Central nervous system

dysfunction.– Gastrointestinal damage.– Uncontrolled internal bleeding.– Bleeding from gums or within the

skin.– Massive infections.– Death.



• Delayed radiation– Everything in vicinity of explosion

radioactive.– Hiroshima - radioactive

rainstorms.– 1/3 of original fissile material not

destroyed.– Widespread contamination. – Increased risk of developing

cancer for survivors.


• Firestorm– Fires started by the first flash

coalesce.– Cause sufficient updraft to form their

own wind, which blows inwards from all sides - increasing the intensity of the fire.

– Fire uses all available oxygen.– “People caught in the open would

melt, those in shelters would probably be baked.”


• In case of a nuclear bomb - don’t bother to call your doctor. – No significant medical response

possible.– Hospitals destroyed, most health

care providers killed.


• Medical response barriers– No electricity, water or telephone

service.– No drugs, sterile IV solutions,

bandages.– Impassable roads, inaccessible areas.– Overloading of emergency/ hospital

services in surrounding areas.– Rescuers risk radiation exposure.


• Medical problems: one city of 1-2 million– Fifty times more severe burns than

burn beds in North America.– A year’s supply of blood for

transfusions needed immediately.– Bottlenecks and delays due to the

need for radioactivity assays.– Most of injured die, even from

easily treated injuries.

One-megaton bomb One-megaton bomb detonated at ground-leveldetonated at ground-level

• Enormous crater - 400 metres wide and 70 metres deep.

• Major fallout of radioactive particulates, potentially lethal hundreds of kilometres downwind.

• Area of blast damage and immediate deaths about one half of air detonation scenario.

• More deaths days to weeks after bomb due to radiation sickness from fallout.

1 megaton bomb over Ottawa1 megaton bomb over Ottawa

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Effect of nuclear warEffect of nuclear war

• Many nuclear bombs exploded.• End of civilization in countries

concerned.• Radioactive contamination of

whole continents.• Permanent large scale damage

to environment. • Nuclear winter.

Nuclear winterNuclear winter

• Airborne contaminants absorb and reflect the sun’s rays.

• Results in an extended period of semi-darkness and freezing temperatures.

• Potentially generated from less than 100 detonations.

InternationInternational Law and al Law and

TreatiesTreaties

The World Court

Disa

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International law and International law and nuclear disarmament nuclear disarmament

• International law regime relating to nuclear weapons is still developing.– Current treaties focus on reducing

arms and preventing proliferation. – None expressly ban nuclear

weapons universally and provide for nuclear disarmament.

Anti-Ballistic Missile Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM) - 1972Treaty (ABM) - 1972

• Agreement between the US and USSR.

• Both promise to establish no more than one ABM site on their national territory.

• Bans the testing, development and deployment of sea-, air-, space- and mobile land-based missile defense systems.

Non-Proliferation Treaty Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)- 1968(NPT)- 1968

• Cornerstone of the global disarmament regime.

• 187 states are parties – India, Pakistan, Israel and Cuba not parties.

• Two-part bargain between nuclear weapon states (NWS) and non-nuclear weapon states (NNWS).

Non-Proliferation TreatyNon-Proliferation Treaty

• Article I – Nuclear weapons states undertake not to transfer nuclear explosive devices nor to encourage or assist non-nuclear weapons states to acquire or manufacture nuclear explosive devices.

• Article VI - Obligate the nuclear weapon states to pursue negotiations to eliminate their arsenals.

Non-Proliferation TreatyNon-Proliferation Treaty

• Article II – Non-nuclear weapon states undertake not to receive, acquire or manufacture nuclear explosive devices.

NPT 2000 ReviewNPT 2000 Review

• States committed to “An unequivocal undertaking … to accomplish the total elimination of their nuclear arsenals …”

• All parties to the NPT 2000 Review Conference agreed to 13 Practical Steps for Nuclear Disarmament.

13 practical steps13 practical steps

1. Signing the CTBT2. Stopping Testing3. Negotiation4. Negotiation5. No Going Back6. Abolishing Nukes7. Implementing Existing

Treaties

13 practical steps13 practical steps

8. Implementing Existing Treaties

9. Step by Step…10. Stopping the

Production of Plutonium11. General and Complete

Disarmament12. Reporting13. Verifying

WILP

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•START I - signed in 1991. – US and Russia agreed to reduce

arsenals 50% by 1998 (completed 2001).

•START II - signed in 1993. •US and Russia discussing new agreements that may supercede START II.

Strategic Arms Reduction Strategic Arms Reduction Treaties (START)Treaties (START)

Comprehensive Test Ban Comprehensive Test Ban TreatyTreaty

• 1996- Signed by 150 countries.• India and Pakistan have not signed.• 20 countries have ratified.• The US continues to oppose ratification

as stated in their recent Nuclear Posture Review.

• This treaty bans all nuclear explosions, including "peaceful nuclear explosions".

Conference on Conference on DisarmamentDisarmament

• The sole multilateral body responsible for the negotiation of international treaties relating to disarmament.

• Established in 1979.• 66 countries are members. • Based in Geneva, Switzerland.

• A coordinated multilateral effort and genuine commitment to disarmament is needed.

• NWC - An agreement on the prohibition of nuclear weapons and a plan for their elimination.

Nuclear Weapons Nuclear Weapons Convention (NWC)Convention (NWC)

Model NWC, 1997Model NWC, 1997

• Model NWC - submitted by Costa Rica to the United Nations as a discussion draft in 1997.

• Prohibits development, testing, production, stockpiling, transfer, use, and threat of use of nuclear weapons.

• NWS required to destroy their arsenals according to a series of phases.

Advisory Opinion, July 8, 1996:

“...the threat or use of nuclear weapons would generally be contrary to the rules of international law applicable in armed conflict, and in particular the principles and rules of humanitarian law.”

International Court of International Court of JusticeJustice

International Court of International Court of JusticeJustice

The use of any weapon must: – be proportional to the initial

attack.– be necessary for effective self-

defence.– discriminate between military

targets and civilian non-targets.– not cause severe, widespread,

or long-term damage to the environment.

– not affect states that are not parties to the conflict.

Use of any existing nuclear weapons would not be in compliance with international humanitarian law.

However, NWS continue to rely on nuclear weapons as fundamental to their national security policies.

International Court of International Court of Justice - ImplicationsJustice - Implications

AchievementsAchievements

• Limited Test Ban Treaty (1963).– Resulted from mass

movements of public opinion.

– Doctors collected evidence of strontium-90 in children’s teeth.

• Arsenal reductions.– 1986-2001 total weapons

warheads decreased by more than 50%.Women Strike for

Peace, 1960

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Achievements - Nuclear Achievements - Nuclear free zonesfree zones

• Treaties completely banning nuclear explosive devices in territories.– Latin America– South Pacific– Antarctica– Africa– South East Asia

• Proposed zones for Central Asia, Central Europe and the Middle East.

Public opinion on Canada’s Public opinion on Canada’s rolerole

• A 1998 Canada-wide poll asked: “Do you agree that Canada should take a leadership role in global negotiations to eliminate nuclear weapons?”– 93% agreed.– 6% disagreed. – 1% were undecided.

Public opinion in the USPublic opinion in the US

• A 1997 poll asked Americans: “Do you agree that the US should negotiate an agreement to eliminate nuclear weapons?”– 87% agreed.– 10% disagreed. – 3% were undecided.

Peace March in San Francisco - April 20, 2002

Thre

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What What Canadians can Canadians can

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Somerville House Books, Ltd

Letters, Letters, LettersLetters, Letters, Letters

• Write to your elected officials:– Opposing Canadian participation in the

US NMD system. – Supporting the UN resolution calling for

a Nuclear Weapons Convention.

• Foreign Affairs Minister, Bill Graham is serious about disarmament - let him know you support him.

• No postage required on letters to MP’s.

• Your communication does have an impact

• Most effective means of communication:1. Meet MP in person2. Handwritten letter.3. Fax or typed letter.4. Email.5. Telephone call.6. Prewritten postcard or form letter.7. Petition.

Government contactsGovernment contacts

• Prime Minister Chretien: [email protected] Fax: 613-941-

6900• Deputy Prime Minister: [email protected]• Minister of Foreign Affairs:

[email protected]• Free mailing address: House of Commons

Parliament Buildings Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6

• USA - [email protected] [email protected]

[email protected]

MediaMedia

• Respond to TV and radio talk shows. – CBC has the ‘talk back’ forum - use it!– Well-stated opinions reach huge

numbers of people.

• Send letters to the editor and write opinion articles.

• Demand that mainstream media be more objective in their reporting.

• Seek out alternative media sources.

EducationEducation

• Knowledge = empowerment! • Educate yourself, friends and family.• Join a peace group or form your own.• Encourage your university professors

to have a ‘teach in’ about militarism and globalization.– Public Interest Research Groups (PIRG)

at universities offer such services.

“As long as nuclear weapons and the fissile material from which they are manufactured exist, neither the terrorist threat nor the nuclear ambitions of those states who covet them can be eradicated.”

IPPNWK. Kurita

QuestionsQuestions??

“Bombs will make the rainbow break”

Zahm

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nuclear weapons 101. “the nuclear bomb is the most anti-democratic, anti- human, outright evil...

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