Did Israel Drop The Bomb In Lebanon?

Well, according to the British paper, The Independent, they kinda sorta, well... yeah. Now, watch Shlemazl debunk this new 21st century blood libel. Reprinted in its entirety:

Dr Busby for Nobel Prize or Israel's New Nuclear Weapons

According to the Independent:

Scientific evidence ... suggests that uranium-based munitions may now also be included in Israel's weapons inventory - and were used against targets in Lebanon. According to Dr Chris Busby, the British Scientific Secretary of the European Committee on Radiation Risk, two soil samples thrown up by Israeli heavy or guided bombs showed "elevated radiation signatures". Both have been forwarded for further examination to the Harwell laboratory in Oxfordshire for mass spectrometry - used by the Ministry of Defence - which has confirmed the concentration of uranium isotopes in the samples.

Dr Busby's initial report states that there are two possible reasons for the contamination. "The first is that the weapon was some novel small experimental nuclear fission device or other experimental weapon (eg, a thermobaric weapon) based on the high temperature of a uranium oxidation flash ... The second is that the weapon was a bunker-busting conventional uranium penetrator weapon employing enriched uranium rather than depleted uranium." A photograph of the explosion of the first bomb shows large clouds of black smoke that might result from burning uranium. [ref]



I am well familiar with Dr Busby, the UK "expert" on low radiation. The man is known to be a complete idiot, but he still managed to surprise me.

In England he was the lauphing stock of all the people who have any clue about physics. He was also popular with "radiation" conspiracy theories. He founded the impressively sounding "European Committee on Radiation Risk" which unites him and a small bunch of other complete morons.

Early on in his "chemistry" career he was kicked out of the Queen Mary College [ref], but somehow still got a PhD by the age of 40. He supposedly works as a fellow in biology in the University of Liverpool, but lives in Wales.

Let us examine his latest claim. Via Independent he presents two options:

1. Israel used novel nuclear fission device (eg, a thermobaric weapon).

I don't know what to say about this one, other than that when a nuclear fission device is used in anger, peopele know about it because they see a mushroom cloud. I am lost for words. Thermobaric weapon is simply one of bunker-busting munitions whereas dispersed gas expolodes, often in enclosed premises. This weapon has nothing to do with "nuclear fission".

2. Israel used bunker busters tipped with enriched Uranium instead of depleted Uranium.

Does he think Israel is stupid? I mean what would be the point of doing this?

Depleted Uranium is routinely used in weapons because it is very heavy and enhances penetrating ability of munitions. Radiation risk from depleted Uranium is non-existent (not when compared to you gas oven at home or a piece of granite), but there are toxic risks associated with any heavy metal.

Using enriched Uranium instead of depleted in bunker-busting munitions would be equivelent to paving roads with diamonds instead of tarmac. The radiation risk would still be minimal, but the cost would go up astronomically. Note that the laboratory did not say anything about "enriched uranium"; only that the material is slightly radioactive, which is true for most materials around us.

--------------------------------------------------

I wonder why Israel is always the No 1 target for blood libel by the likes of Independent, Fisk and Busby. Perhaps some Englishmen have this in their blood.

Technorati Tags: Israel, The+Independent, Great, Britain, England, Nuclear, Weapon, Busby, Fisk, Lebanon, Uranium