Short for "GeologicalScienceBlog", subjects will include Geology, Climatology, Environmental Science, NASCAR, Beer, Property Rights, Politics from a Christian Conservative/Libertarian viewpoint, and random thoughts. My background is two degrees in Geology (BS, MS), 8 years of geology/environmental employment and almost 8 years of teaching Geology and Environmental Science on a Junior College level. <68>

Thursday, September 06, 2007

"That" B-52 Flight From North Dakota to Louisiana...

is causing a bit of stir in some circles, I can only imagine what the Leftist Moonbat blogs are saying. They are probably suggesting that the B-52 was mis-directed from a secret mission to Iran, by the actions of a brave computer programmer that changed computer coordinates in the name of "peace". Or they may blame the mistake on the low quality of recruits in the Air Force, because the military is stretched too thin in Iraq.

Say Anything is one of the blogs where there are more details on this incident. Because of safety issues, apparently nuke-carrying strategic bombers are deployed over the oceans. It is unlikely that there would be a nuclear explosion in the event of this B-52 crashing or accidentally dropping one or more of the nuke-tipped cruise missiles.

This website has a long list (scroll down) of "broken arrow" incidents with crashes and inadvertent droppings of un-armed nuclear weapons. There have been some detonations of the HE (high explosive) material in the weapons and in some cases, it has scattered some nuclear material over a short distance from the impact/explosion crater (or the crash site).

If you are old enough, you might remember this incident:

"January 17, 1966/B-52/KC-135/Palomares, Spain:

The B-52 and the KC-135 collided during a routine high altitude air refueling operation. Both aircraft crashed near Palomares, Spain. Four of the eleven crewmembers survived. The B-52 carried four nuclear weapons. One was recovered on the ground and on April 7, one was recovered from the sea. Explosive materials exploded on impact with the ground, releasing some radioactive materials. Approximately 1400 tons of slightly contaminated soil and vegetation were removed to the United States for storage at an approved site. Representatives of the Spanish government monitored the cleanup operation.(*1;**2) "

An earlier broken arrow incident off the Georgia Coast is recounted here:

"February 5, 1958/B-47/Savannah River, Georgia:

The B-47 was on a simulated combat mission that originated at Homestead AFB, Florida. While near Savannah, Georgia, the B-47 had a mid-air collision with a F-86 aircraft at 3:30 a.m. Following the collision, the B-47 made three attempts to land at Hunter AFB, Georgia, with a weapon aboard. Because of the condition of the aircraft, its airspeed could not be reduced enough to insure a safe landing. Therefore, the decision was made to jettison the weapon rather than expose Hunter AFB to the possibility of a high explosive detonation. A nuclear detonation was not possible since the nuclear capsule was not aboard the aircraft. The weapon was jettisoned into the water several miles from the mouth of the Savannah River (Georgia) in Wassaw Sound off Tybee Beach. The precise weapon impact point is unknown. The weapon was dropped from an altitude of approximately 7,200 feet at an aircraft speed of 180-190 knots. No detonation occurred. After jettison the B-47 landed safely. A three square mile area was searched using a ship with divers and underwater demolition team technicians using Galvanic drag and handheld sonar devices. The weapon was not found. The search was terminated April 16, 1958. The weapon was considered to be irretrievably lost. (*1; **2)"

Now I don't know if the "nuclear capsule" contains all of the nuclear material in a bomb, or just that "extra" which is necessary for the proper detonation of the weapon.

Supposing that broken arrow off the Georgia Coast had some nuclear material in it, imagine this scenario on a shrimp boat, arriving back at port, a few years later:

BOSS: "Boy, you ain't supposed to be catching that many lobsters!"

BOAT CAPTAIN: "Them ain't lobsters. Them is shrimp. I tried a new area and the shrimp are huge. And the strange thing about them is that they is already half-cooked. And they glow in the dark. I been hearing rumors about them for years."

BOSS: "I dunno. Somethin' ain't right here. Maybe we ought to tell someone, like the Coast Guard."

BOAT CAPTAIN: "Nah, we cain't tell the Coast Guard 'cause they'll tell the EPA and they will call these shrimp an Endangered Species and say we cain't catch them no more. I say we sell them on Halloween and charge extra money for them!"

BOSS: "I dunno. What would Forrest say?"

BOAT CAPTAIN: "I dunno. I think he off runnin' somewhar."

All kidding aside, this is part of the cost of eternal vigilance. It was a screw-up that someone is going to get hammered about, it ain't part of some plot.

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Posted by: on-the-rocks / 10:28 AM
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