Why Highly Enriched Uranium Is Dangerous

Bomb Chasers: How A Potential Nuke Was Rescued From The Chile Quake -- Time Magazine

Andrew Bieniawski was in bed when the earthquake struck. On Feb. 26, Bieniawski, the assistant deputy administrator for the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), had arrived in Santiago, Chile, to join a group of scientists and nuclear engineers on a top-secret mission to remove a potential nuclear bomb from the country. Around 40 lb. (18 kg) of highly enriched uranium (HEU) — with enough latent energy to destroy a portion of a city — had already been inventoried, secured and made ready for transport to a highly secure facility in the U.S. Running ahead of schedule, Bieniawski had taken his team out for dinner with Chilean nuclear agency officials before heading to bed. Then the big one hit.

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My Comment: A fascinating story, worthy of a Hollywood plot. Kudos to Time Magazine for making this story public.