we should stop making nuclear weapons
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We Should Stop Making Nuclear
Weapons
By Elhussain Soarkati
My topic is nuclear weapons. I strongly believe that the world should not only stop
making nuclear weapons, but also destroy all the nuclear weapons available in the wholeworld.
The first reason is because nuclear weapons are extremely destructive weapons. The lives
of people and other living creatures on the earth are threatened by sudden death. Those
who are lucky to survive a nuclear attack will have serious and disabilities. For example,many people in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, cities in Japan destroyed by American nuclear
weapons, later developed terrible problems.
The second reason in that the world is wasting billions and billions of dollars by making
nuclear weapons. This money could be used for development and to improve the lives ofmany people. Rich countries would be much richer and more able to help other poor
countries.
One more reason in that if countries didn't have nuclear weapons, perhaps they wouldn't
think so much about war. For example, India and Pakistan developed nuclear weapons.Now, they are in a conflict concerning Kashmir, and people think they might use the
nuclear weapons.
I conclude that, the world would be a more peaceful place if countries would stop makingnuclear weapons. If we destroyed the nuclear weapons that now exist, we could use ourresources to make life better for many people.
Copyright Silver International Newspaper 2002 (This page was created by Marvin
Rodriguez.) http://silverinternational.mbhs.edu/v163/V16.3.09d.Nuclear.htm
Nuclear Devices
Theories that Nuclear Weapons Destroyed the Twin Towers
Some have theorized that the demolitions of the Twin Towers were achieved through the
use of nuclear or thermonuclear devices. Theories that known variants of such devices
were used can be rejected out of hand because the destruction of the Towers was not
consistent with the inherent features of known nuclear devices: whereas the Towers were
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gradually blasted over intervals of about 15 seconds, nuclear detonations are focused in a
single point in time. Hence nuclear theorists have suggested that several 'mini-nukes'
were used to destroy the Towers in a series of detonations. Such theories are also
untenable for reasons describedbelow.
A Litany of Flimsy Claims
Some of the claims that have been used to support the nuclear weapons theory include:
Extreme heat in spots deep in the rubble piles
Massive subterranean explosions preceding the falls of the Towers
Reports that the cell phones of people near the WTC went dead at the
commencement of the South Tower collapse, suggesting an electromagnetic pulse
(EMP) of the type associated with the detonation of a thermonuclear device Afterglows captured on electronic cameras at the end of each of the Towers'
collapses (see videos of the collapses.)
Aside from the first claim, which is ambiguous, none appear to be supported by credible
evidence:
There are no reports of temperature measurements deep in the rubble pile when
Ground Zero was hottest, and high temperatures are consistent with residual heatin the rubble piles from residues or ongoing reactions of energetic materials used
to demolish the buildings.
The idea that massive subterranean explosions preceded the collapses is based
primarily on misinterpretations of seismic data, and is contradicted by theaccounts of people on the ground.
The cell phone outages story may be an urban myth, perhaps based on reports of
communications disruptions from the loss of the North Tower's rooftop antennas. Videos do not consistently show the alleged afterglows, which could simply be an
artifact of camera aperture adjustments.
Claims About Radioactive Fallout
Any use of nuclear devices would have produced vast amounts radioactive fallout
detectable even at great distances from Lower Manhattan. No such contamination has
been found. Nonetheless, advocates of the nuclear weapons theory claim that scientific
reports examining the chemical composition of World Trade Center remains and dust
support their theory. Two such claims concern the detection of tritium and uranium.
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Tritium
Tritium is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen in which the nucleus contains one proton and
two neutrons. Nuclear fusion produces large amounts of tritium.
Although tritium is formed naturally through the interaction of cosmic rays with the
atmosphere, it does not accumulate because of its short half-life of 12.3 years. Because its
decay products cause phosphors to glow, tritium is used in self-illuminating devices
found in watches, exit signs, and gun sights.
Proponents of the WTC nuclear weapons theory have cited the following passage, which
reports the detection of tritiated water around the WTC, as evidence for their theory.
Traces of tritiated water (HTO) were detected at the World Trade Center (WTC) ground
zero after the 9/11/01 terrorist attack. A water sample from the WTC sewer, collected on9/13/01, contained 0.1640.074nCi/L of HTO. A split water sample, collected on 9/21/01
from the basement of WTC Building 6, contained 3.530.17 and 2.830.15 nCi/L,respectively. 1
The quantities reported are extremely small, and, as the same report states, their likely
source was tritium radioluminescent devices in the World Trade Center.
Uranium
Uranium is a naturally-occurring element (atomic number 92) used to fuel nuclear
reactors and manufacture plutonium (atomic number 94) for nuclear weapons. Uranium
has several different isotopes, which are radioactive to different extents.
Proponents of the WTC nuclear weapons theory have cited the following passage from a
scientific study of dust and smoke emanating from Ground Zero as evidence for their
theory.
Radionuclides. We analyzed the gamma spectrum of the samples using an EG&G/Ortec
high-purity Ge detector (50% relative efficiency) gamma counter (EG&G/OrtecInstruments, Inc., Oak Ridge, TN). We analyzed approximately 50 peaks based on
statistical significance (counting/lack of interferences). These included thorium, uranium,
actinium series, and primordial radionuclides. Liquid scintillation analyses wereconducted for emissions on the total dust and smoke samples using a Packard Tri-Carb
Model 2770 TR/SL (Packard Instrument, Meriden, CT). The MDA [mimimum detectable
activity] for alpha radioactivity was 0.30 DPM (0.14 pCi) based on a NIST-traceable226Ra standard (National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD).
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When placed in the liquid scintillation fluid, the WTC samples are somewhat darker than
the backgrounds and calibration standard, which may cause slight underreporting of the
beta activity due to quenching and standard-to-sample efficiency bias. 2
[NOTE: MDA means minimum detectable activity, and DPM means decays per minute.]
The passage indicates that the radioactivity of the WTC samples was only slightly above
background levels, which is not surprising, given that small quantities of radionuclides
are used in applications likely present in the Towers.
Steven Jonestested a solidified metal sample for radioactivity and found no radioactivity
above background levels.
References
1. Study of Traces of Tritium at the World Trade Center, llnl.gov, 10/1/02
2. Characterization of the Dust/Smoke Aerosol that Settled East of the World Trade Center (WTC) inLower Manhattan after the Collapse of the WTC 11 September 2001, ehponline.org,
http://911research.wtc7.net/wtc/analysis/theories/nuclear.html
Nuclear weapon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation,search"A-bomb" redirects here. For other uses, seeA-bomb (disambiguation).
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The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan on August 9, 1945 rose
some 18 kilometers (11 miles) above the bomb'shypocenter.
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclearreactions, eitherfission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast
quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission ("atomic")bomb test released the same amount of energy as approximately 20,000tons of TNT. The
first thermonuclear ("hydrogen") bomb test released the same amount of energy asapproximately 10,000,000 tons of TNT.[1]
A modern thermonuclear weapon weighing little more than a thousand kilograms (2,200
pounds) can produce an explosion comparable to the detonation of more than a billion
kilograms (2.2 billion pounds) of conventional high explosive.[2] Thus, even single smallnuclear devices no larger than traditional bombs can devastate an entire city by blast, fire
andradiation. Nuclear weapons are consideredweapons of mass destruction, and their
use and controlhas been a major focus ofinternational relationspolicy since their debut.
In the history of warfare, only two nuclear weaponshave been detonated offensively,
both near the end ofWorld War II. The first was detonated on the morning of 6 August
1945, when the United States dropped auranium gun-type device code-named "Little
Boy" on theJapanesecity ofHiroshima. The second was detonated three days later whenthe United States dropped aplutonium implosion-type device code-named "Fat Man" on
the city ofNagasaki, Japan. These twobombings resulted in the deaths of approximately
200,000 Japanese people (mostly civilians) from acute injuries sustained from theexplosion.[3] There is current debate over the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki.
Since the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, nuclear weapons have been detonated onover two thousand occasions fortesting purposes and demonstration purposes.A fewstates have possessed such weapons or are suspected of seeking them. The only countries
known to have detonated nuclear weaponsand that acknowledge possessing such
weaponsare (chronologically) theUnited States, theSoviet Union(succeeded as anuclear power by Russia), the United Kingdom, France, the People's Republic of China,
India, Pakistan, andNorth Korea. Israel is also widely believed to possess nuclear
weapons, though it does not acknowledge having them.[4]
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Types of nuclear weapons
The two basic fissionweapon designs
Main article:Nuclear weapon design
There are two basic types of nuclear weapon. The first type produces its explosive energythrough nuclear fission reactions alone. Such fission weapons are commonly referred to
as atomic bombs oratom bombs (abbreviated as A-bombs), though their energy comes
specifically from the nucleus of the atom.
In fission weapons, a mass offissile material (enriched uranium orplutonium) isassembled into a supercritical massthe amount of material needed to start an
exponentially growingnuclear chain reactioneither by shooting one piece of sub-
critical material into another (the "gun" method) or by compressing a sub-critical sphereof material using chemical explosivesto many times its original density (the "implosion"
method). The latter approach is considered more sophisticated than the former and only
the latter approach can be used if the fissile material is plutonium.
A major challenge in all nuclear weapon designs is to ensure that a significant fraction ofthe fuel is consumed before the weapon destroys itself. The amount of energy released by
fission bombs can range from the equivalent of less than a ton ofTNT upwards of
500,000 tons (500 kilotons) of TNT.[5]
The second basic type of nuclear weapon produces a large amount of its energy throughnuclear fusionreactions. Such fusion weapons are generally referred to as
thermonuclear weapons or more colloquially as hydrogen bombs (abbreviated as H-bombs), as they rely on fusion reactions between isotopes ofhydrogen(deuterium andtritium). However, all such weapons derive a significant portion, and sometimes a
majority, of their energy from fission (including fission induced by neutrons from fusion
reactions). Unlike fission weapons, there are no inherent limits on the energy released by
thermonuclear weapons. Only six countriesUnited States, Russia, United Kingdom,
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People's Republic of China, France and Indiahave conducted thermonuclear weapon
tests. (Whether India has detonated a "true", multi-staged thermonuclear weaponis
controversial.)[6]
The basics of the TellerUlam designfor a hydrogen bomb: a fission bomb uses radiationto compress and heat a separate section of fusion fuel.
Thermonuclear bombs work by using the energy of a fission bomb to compress and heat
fusion fuel. In the Teller-Ulam design, which accounts for all multi-megaton yield
hydrogen bombs, this is accomplished by placing a fission bomb and fusion fuel (tritium,deuterium, orlithium deuteride) in proximity within a special, radiation-reflecting
container. When the fission bomb is detonated, gammaand X-raysemitted first compress
the fusion fuel, then heat it to thermonuclear temperatures. The ensuing fusion reaction
creates enormous numbers of high-speedneutrons, which can then induce fission inmaterials not normally prone to it, such as depleted uranium. Each of these components is
known as a "stage", with the fission bomb as the "primary" and the fusion capsule as the"secondary". In large hydrogen bombs, about half of the yield, and much of the resultingnuclear fallout, comes from the final fissioning of depleted uranium.[5]
By chaining together numerous stages with increasing amounts of fusion fuel,
thermonuclear weapons can be made to an almost arbitrary yield; the largest ever
detonated (the Tsar Bombaof the USSR) released an energy equivalent of over 50million tons (50 megatons) of TNT. Most thermonuclear weapons are considerably
smaller than this, due to practical constraints arising from the space and weight
requirements of missile warheads.[7]
There are other types of nuclear weapons as well. For example, a boosted fission weaponis a fission bomb which increases its explosive yield through a small amount of fusion
reactions, but it is not a fusion bomb. In the boosted bomb, the neutrons produced by the
fusion reactions serve primarily to increase the efficiency of the fission bomb. Someweapons are designed for special purposes; a neutron bomb is a thermonuclear weapon
that yields a relatively small explosion but a relatively large amount of neutronradiation;
such a device could theoretically be used to cause massive casualties while leavinginfrastructure mostly intact and creating a minimal amount of fallout.
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The detonation of any nuclear weapon is accompanied by a blast ofneutron radiation.
Surrounding a nuclear weapon with suitable materials (such ascobalt orgold) creates a
weapon known as a salted bomb. This device can produce exceptionally large quantitiesofradioactive contamination.
Most variation in nuclear weapon design is for the purpose of achieving different yieldsfor different situations, and in manipulating design elements to attempt to minimize
weapon size.[5]
Weapons delivery
The first nuclear weapons weregravity bombs, such as this "Fat Man" weapon dropped
onNagasaki, Japan. They were very large and could only be delivered byheavy bomber
aircraftMain article:Nuclear weapons delivery
Nuclear weapons deliverythe technology and systems used to bring a nuclear weapon
to its targetis an important aspect of nuclear weapons relating both tonuclear weapon
design and nuclear strategy. Additionally, development and maintenance of deliveryoptions is among the most resource-intensive aspects of a nuclear weapons program:
according to one estimate, deployment costs accounted for 57% of the total financial
resources spent by the United States in relation to nuclear weapons since 1940. [8]
Historically the first method of delivery, and the method used in the two nuclear weaponsactually used in warfare, was as a gravity bomb, dropped frombomberaircraft. This
method is usually the first developed by countries as it does not place many restrictions
on the size of the weapon and weapon miniaturization is something which requiresconsiderable weapons design knowledge. It does, however, limit the range of attack, the
response time to an impending attack, and the number of weapons which can be fielded at
any given time.
With the advent of miniaturization, nuclear bombs can be delivered by both strategicbombers and tactical fighter-bombers, allowing an air force to use its current fleet with
little or no modification. This method may still be considered the primary means of
nuclear weapons delivery; the majority of U.S. nuclear warheads, for example, are free-fall gravity bombs, namely the B61.[5]
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A Trident IISLBM launched from a Royal NavyVanguardclassballistic missile
submarine.
More preferable from a strategic point of view is a nuclear weapon mounted onto a
missile, which can use aballistictrajectory to deliver the warhead over the horizon.
While even short range missiles allow for a faster and less vulnerable attack, thedevelopment of long-range intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) andsubmarine-
launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) has given some nations the ability to plausibly
deliver missiles anywhere on the globe with a high likelihood of success.
More advanced systems, such as multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles(MIRVs), allow multiple warheads to be launched at different targets from one missile,
reducing the chance of a successfulmissile defense. Today, missiles are most commonamong systems designed for delivery of nuclear weapons. Making a warhead smallenough to fit onto a missile, though, can be a difficult task.[5]
Tactical weapons have involved the most variety of delivery types, including not only
gravity bombs and missiles but also artillery shells, land mines, and nucleardepth
charges and torpedoes foranti-submarine warfare. An atomicmortarwas also tested atone time by the United States. Small, two-man portable tactical weapons (somewhat
misleadingly referred to as suitcase bombs), such as the Special Atomic Demolition
Munition, have been developed, although the difficulty of combining sufficient yield withportability limits their military utility.[5]
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Nuclear strategy
The United States' Peacekeeper missile was a MIRVed delivery system. Each missilecould contain up to ten nuclear warheads (shown in red), each of which could be aimed at
a different target. These were developed to makemissile defensevery difficult for an
enemy country.Main article:Nuclear warfare
Nuclear warfare strategy is a set of policies that deal with preventing or fighting a nuclear
war. The policy of trying to prevent an attack by a nuclear weapon from another country
by threatening nuclear retaliation is known as the strategy ofnuclear deterrence. The goalin deterrence is to always maintain a second strike capability (the ability of a country to
respond to a nuclear attack with one of its own) and potentially to strive forfirst strike
status (the ability to completely destroy an enemy's nuclear forces before they couldretaliate). During the Cold War, policy and military theorists in nuclear-enabled countries
worked out models of what sorts of policies could prevent one from ever being attacked
by a nuclear weapon.
Different forms ofnuclear weapons delivery (see above) allow for different types ofnuclear strategies. The goals of any strategy are generally to make it difficult for an
enemy to launch a pre-emptive strike against the weapon system and difficult to defend
against the delivery of the weapon during a potential conflict. Sometimes this has meantkeeping the weapon locations hidden, such as deploying them on submarines or rail cars
whose locations are very hard for an enemy to track and other times this means protecting
them by burying them in hardened bunkers.
Other components of nuclear strategies have included using missile defense (to destroythe missiles before they land) or implementation ofcivil defense measures (using early-
warning systems to evacuate citizens to safe areas before an attack).
Note that weapons which are designed to threaten large populations or to generally deter
attacks are known asstrategic weapons. Weapons which are designed to actually be usedon abattlefield in military situations are known as tactical weapons.
There are critics of the very idea of nuclear strategy for waging nuclear war who have
suggested that a nuclear war between two nuclear powers would result in mutual
annihilation. From this point of view, the significance of nuclear weapons is purely to
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deter war because any nuclear warwould immediately escalate out of mutual distrust and
fear, resulting in mutually assured destruction. This threat of national, if not global,
destruction has been a strong motivation for anti-nuclear weapons activism.
Critics from the peace movement and within the military establishment have questioned
the usefulness of such weapons in the current military climate. The use of (or threat ofuse of) such weapons would generally be contrary to the rules of international law
applicable in armed conflict, according to an advisory opinionissued by the InternationalCourt of Justice in 1996.
Perhaps the most controversial idea in nuclear strategy is that nuclear proliferation would
be desirable. This view argues that, unlike conventional weapons, nuclear weapons
successfully deter all-out war between states, and they are said to have done this duringthe Cold Warbetween the U.S. and theSoviet Union. Political scientistKenneth Waltz is
the most prominent advocate of this argument.
The threat of potentially suicidal terrorists possessing nuclear weapons (a form ofnuclearterrorism) complicates the decision process. Mutually assured destructionmay not be
effective against an enemy who expects to die in a confrontation and would not therefore
be deterred by a sense of self-preservation. Further, if the initial act is from arogue group
instead of a sovereign nation, there is no fixed nation or fixed military targets to retaliateagainst. It has been argued, especially after the September 11, 2001 attacks, that this
complication is the sign of the next age of nuclear strategy, distinct from the relative
stability of the Cold War.[9]
Governance, control, and law
The International Atomic Energy Agency was created in 1957 in order to encourage thepeaceful development of nuclear technology while providing international safeguards
against nuclear proliferation
Because of the immense military power they can confer, the political control of nuclear
weapons has been a key issue for as long as they have existed; in most countries the useof nuclear force can only be authorized by thehead of government orhead of state.[10]
In the late 1940s, lack of mutual trust was preventing the United States and the Soviet
Union from making ground towards international arms control agreements, but by the
1960s steps were being taken to limit both theproliferation of nuclear weapons to othercountries and the environmental effects ofnuclear testing. The Partial Test Ban Treaty
(1963) restricted all nuclear testing to underground nuclear testing, to prevent
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contamination from nuclear fallout, while theNuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (1968)
attempted to place restrictions on the types of activities which signatories could
participate in, with the goal of allowing the transference of non-military nucleartechnologyto member countries without fear of proliferation.
In 1957, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was established under themandate of the United Nationsin order to encourage the development of the peaceful
applications of nuclear technology, provide international safeguards against its misuse,and facilitate the application of safety measures in its use. In 1996, many nations signed
and ratified the Comprehensive Test Ban Treatywhich prohibits all testing of nuclear
weapons, which would impose a significant hindrance to their development by anycomplying country.[11]
Additional treaties have governed nuclear weapons stockpiles between individual
countries, such as the SALT I and START I treaties, which limited the numbers and types
of nuclear weapons between the United States and the Soviet Union.
Nuclear weapons have also been opposed by agreements between countries. Many
nations have been declaredNuclear-Weapon-Free Zones, areas where nuclear weapons
production and deployment are prohibited, through the use of treaties. The Treaty of
Tlatelolco (1967) prohibited any production or deployment of nuclear weapons inLatinAmericaand the Caribbean, and theTreaty of Pelindaba(1964) prohibits nuclear
weapons in many African countries. As recently as 2006 a Central Asian Nuclear
Weapon Free Zone was established amongst the former Soviet republics of Central Asiaprohibiting nuclear weapons.
In the middle of 1996, the International Court of Justice, the highest court of the United
Nations, issued an Advisory Opinion concerned with the "Legality of the Threat or Useof Nuclear Weapons". The court ruled that the use or threat of use of nuclear weaponswould violate various articles ofinternational law, including theGeneva Conventions, the
Hague Conventions, the UN Charter, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In
view of the unique, destructive characteristics of nuclear weapons, the InternationalCommittee of the Red Cross calls on States to ensure that these weapons are never used,
irrespective of whether they consider them to be lawful or not.[12]
Additionally, there have been other, specific actions meant to discourage countries from
developing nuclear arms. In the wake of the tests by India and Pakistan in 1998,economic sanctions were (temporarily) levied against both countries, though neither were
signatories with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. One of the stated casus bellifor
the initiation of the 2003 Iraq Warwas an accusation by the United States that Iraq wasactively pursuing nuclear arms (though this was soon discoverednot to be the case as the
program had been discontinued). In 1981, Israel hadbombed a nuclear reactorbeing
constructed in Osirak, Iraq, in what it called an attempt to halt Iraq's previous nuclear
arms ambitions.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_fallouthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_Non-Proliferation_Treatyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_technologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_technologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_technologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Atomic_Energy_Agencyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comprehensive_Test_Ban_Treatyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comprehensive_Test_Ban_Treatyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon#cite_note-Richelson-10%23cite_note-Richelson-10http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SALT_Ihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/START_Ihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear-Weapon-Free_Zonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear-Weapon-Free_Zonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear-Weapon-Free_Zonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Tlatelolcohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Tlatelolcohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_Americahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_Americahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_Americahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_Americahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caribbeanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Pelindabahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Pelindabahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Pelindabahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Asian_Nuclear_Weapon_Free_Zonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Asian_Nuclear_Weapon_Free_Zonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Court_of_Justicehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Court_of_Justice_advisory_opinion_on_the_Legality_of_the_Threat_or_Use_of_Nuclear_Weaponshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Court_of_Justice_advisory_opinion_on_the_Legality_of_the_Threat_or_Use_of_Nuclear_Weaponshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_lawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_lawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_Conventionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_Conventionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hague_Conventions_(1899_and_1907)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UN_Charterhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Declaration_of_Human_Rightshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Declaration_of_Human_Rightshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Committee_of_the_Red_Crosshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Committee_of_the_Red_Crosshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon#cite_note-11%23cite_note-11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon#cite_note-11%23cite_note-11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casus_bellihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casus_bellihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Warhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niger_uranium_forgerieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niger_uranium_forgerieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Operahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osirakhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraqhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_fallouthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_Non-Proliferation_Treatyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_technologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_technologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Atomic_Energy_Agencyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comprehensive_Test_Ban_Treatyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon#cite_note-Richelson-10%23cite_note-Richelson-10http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SALT_Ihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/START_Ihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear-Weapon-Free_Zonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Tlatelolcohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Tlatelolcohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_Americahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_Americahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caribbeanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Pelindabahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Asian_Nuclear_Weapon_Free_Zonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Asian_Nuclear_Weapon_Free_Zonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Court_of_Justicehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Court_of_Justice_advisory_opinion_on_the_Legality_of_the_Threat_or_Use_of_Nuclear_Weaponshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Court_of_Justice_advisory_opinion_on_the_Legality_of_the_Threat_or_Use_of_Nuclear_Weaponshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_lawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_Conventionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hague_Conventions_(1899_and_1907)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UN_Charterhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Declaration_of_Human_Rightshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Committee_of_the_Red_Crosshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Committee_of_the_Red_Crosshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon#cite_note-11%23cite_note-11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casus_bellihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Warhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niger_uranium_forgerieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Operahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osirakhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq -
8/3/2019 We Should Stop Making Nuclear Weapons
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Disarmament
Main article:Nuclear disarmament
Beginning with the 1963 Partial Test Ban Treaty and continuing through the 1996Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, there have been many treaties to limit or reduce nuclear
weapons testing and stockpiles. The 1968Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty has as one ofits explicit conditions that all signatories must "pursue negotiations in good faith"
towards the long-term goal of "complete disarmament". However, no nuclear state hastreated that aspect of the agreement as having binding force.[13]
Only one countrySouth Africahas ever fully renounced nuclear weapons they had
independently developed. A number of former Soviet republicsBelarus,Kazakhstan,andUkrainereturned Soviet nuclear arms stationed in their countries to Russia after the
collapse of the USSR.
Uses
The 1962 Sedan nuclear test formed a crater 100 m (330 ft) deep with a diameter of about
390 m (1,300 ft), as a means of investigating the possibilities of usingpeaceful nuclearexplosions for large-scale earth moving.
Apart from their use as weapons,nuclear explosives have been tested and used for
variousnon-military uses, and proposed, but not used for large-scale earth moving. Whenlong term health and clean-up costs were included, there was no economic advantage
over conventional explosives.[14]
Synthetic elements, such as einsteinium and fermium, created by neutron bombardment
of uranium and plutonium during thermonuclear explosions, were discovered in theaftermath of the first thermonuclear bomb test. In 2008 the worldwide presence of new
isotopes from atmospheric testing beginning in the 1950s was developed into a reliable
way of detecting art forgeries, as all paintings created after that period may contain tracesofcesium-137 andstrontium-90, isotopes that did not exist in nature before 1945.[15]
Nuclear explosives have also been seriously studied as potential propulsion mechanisms
for space travel (see Project Orion). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_disarmamenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Partial_Test_Ban_Treatyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comprehensive_Test_Ban_Treatyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_Non-Proliferation_Treatyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon#cite_note-12%23cite_note-12http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belarushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kazakhstanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kazakhstanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedan_(nuclear_test)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peaceful_nuclear_explosionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peaceful_nuclear_explosionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peaceful_nuclear_explosionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_explosivehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_explosivehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peaceful_nuclear_explosionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peaceful_nuclear_explosionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon#cite_note-13%23cite_note-13http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einsteiniumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermiumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cesium-137http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strontium-90http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strontium-90http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon#cite_note-14%23cite_note-14http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Orion_(nuclear_propulsion)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sedan_Plowshare_Crater.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sedan_Plowshare_Crater.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_disarmamenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Partial_Test_Ban_Treatyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comprehensive_Test_Ban_Treatyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_Non-Proliferation_Treatyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon#cite_note-12%23cite_note-12http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belarushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kazakhstanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedan_(nuclear_test)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peaceful_nuclear_explosionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peaceful_nuclear_explosionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_explosivehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peaceful_nuclear_explosionshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon#cite_note-13%23cite_note-13http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einsteiniumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermiumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cesium-137http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strontium-90http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapon#cite_note-14%23cite_note-14http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Orion_(nuclear_propulsion)