Slowly mass-killing bombs that terrify the world

The thief called his friends to see the strange blue light emanating from the sphere he could see, not expecting that to bring them to a frightening death.

Two scrap thieves

A cluster bomb may contain radioactive material to "dirty" a large area.

Goiânia city, south central Brazil, a cool spring evening in 1988. Two thieves put on dark clothes, covered their faces and went into a suburban clinic. This is the place they've been watching for the past few days, fully meeting the criteria they want: there are no people and there is still something to earn.

Dirty bombs cause heavy environmental and economic damage.

The two thieves quickly sneaked in, scouring the way they used to do in many places before. Flashlight turns on to avoid detection. The abandoned clinic had nothing but dusty tables and chairs, paintings hung on the walls and a large metal ball. With thieves, this iron sphere is considered a fortune.

They rushed the metal ball home to a man, then sawed and sold scraps. They do not know that inside this sphere contains ca-di 137 , a deadly radioactive substance. The very next day, one of the two thieves immediately suffered from symptoms of radiation exposure: vomiting, swollen hands and persistent diarrhea.

Radioactive material container.

The other thief found the strange point that the powder escaping from the sphere glowed blue in the dark night. He called more of his friends to witness the strange phenomenon. And that was the last time they saw this strange thing.

After two weeks of exposure to the radioactive isotope , 5 people were killed. People who accidentally touch or inhale ca-di also suffer from major injuries on the body. 249 people were poisoned and 20 were seriously ill.

The incident in the small city in Brazil shows that the impact of radioactive material is not immediate, but its destructive power is extremely terrible, even if only a small amount is needed.

What is dirty bombs?

There are thousands of radioactive material stores.

Dirty bombs are a special weapon, combining radioactive materials and traditional explosives. The purpose of this weapon is to pollute a large area with nuclear material.

Dirty bombs are not nuclear bombs , although they contain radioactive substances. Dirty bombs do not create a massive explosion that is as devastating as a nuclear bomb. It is only for the purpose of dispersing radioactive material on a large scale and causing less casualties than nuclear bombs.

Nuclear weapons are still the world's most dangerous assassins.

The US Department of Energy used to do experiments and found that, if an area was hit by bombs, after a year, the inhabitants would still live normally. Although the level of radiation is 'quite high', it is not yet enough to kill people like nuclear bombs. The study of the Chernobyl plant nuclear explosion also yielded similar results. People who live around the factory area have almost no serious health problems.

Although it did not cause great loss of life, dirty bombs were still considered a mass murder weapon. The purpose of dirty bombs is to cause great fear for people, or psychological warfare . A large area of ​​contamination will take a lot of time and effort to clean up and cause heavy economic losses.

The risk of terrorism

With the ability to attack silently but dangerously, dirty bombs easily become the target of manufacturing of notorious terrorists. In order to produce this type of bomb, they need to own radioactive material. Currently, there are millions of places using radioactive materials in the world, especially medical research plants or facilities.There are currently 9 types of radioisotopes suitable for making dirty bombs.

Dirty bombs are still a "high-tech" weapon for terrorists.

The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission said every day there was an amount of radioactive material stolen in the country. In Europe, this number is 70 days a year. Although radioactive materials are popular worldwide, only 20% of these can be harmful to human health. Russia is also scattered thousands of places containing radioactive fuel, especially after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

In December 2001, three woodworkers in Georgia found a generator and pulled back to the tent to heat. In just a few hours of use, they were severely exposed to radiation and had to go to an emergency hospital. The World Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said the machine contained radioactivity and these workers were accidentally poisoned.

Although it is dangerous, the possibility of terrorizing the creation of a dirty bomb is very small. The simple reason is that those who transport dirty bombs will definitely get radioactive and die. If the bomb is too dirty, it will reduce the attack power and it is no longer dangerous. Currently, dirty bombs are still considered 'high-tech' weapons for terrorism.