HACKER Q&A
📣 kavalg

Is depleted uranium being spread from the Khmelnitsky explosion?


On May 14 an ammo depot was destroyed in Khmelnitsky. There is a thesis (mainly propped in Russian telegram channels) that the UK DU ammo was kept in this warehouse. The evidence being presented, is an anomaly in the background radiation matching the event [1]. I am not an expert in the subject matter and would like to know your opinion about this, shall we be concerned and what can be done in case there is a real danger (e.g. avoiding going out for a while). Bulgarian people are very sensitive to the subject, due to the Chernobyl and the use of DU shells in the Serbia war.

Please, don't turn this into a political discussion, taking sides of Russia, Ukraine, UK etc. I am only interested in how to check the facts and what can be done to minimize health risks.

[1] - https://remap.jrc.ec.europa.eu/Advanced.aspx

  👤 2rsf Accepted Answer ✓
Probably not a lot to worry about:

https://ec.europa.eu/health/scientific_committees/opinions_l...

https://ec.europa.eu/health/scientific_committees/opinions_l...

👤 defrost
The bulk of the readings around the city are sub 100 nSv/hr with a few 113 & 139 - nothing is significantly spiking post the explosion date.

Others have pointed out pragmatic reasons for not being concerned which appear sound, I'd point out that the point source "gross count" map doesn't raise alarms - and you'd really want decent gamma spectrum data in any case - not just total counts in some energy range, but a full channel by channel spectrum measurement showing peaks in uranium breakdown products [1].

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamma_spectroscopy

👤 fauxpause_
No. Depleted uranium rounds have been used in previous conflicts. They exploded in those conflicts. There was no material radioactive impact of this. It’s also unlikely that the Russian claims are accurate. Russia is falsely playing up these things as nuclear weapons. They’re not.

If you’re concerned about radioactivity you can just look at your own link. The measurements of radiation are all that matters. Not some scary cause. As your link indicates, levels are fine.

👤 _kbh_
> The evidence being presented, is an anomaly in the background radiation matching the event [1].

Im not seeing any evidence of an anomaly?, do you have a link to one.

👤 varjag
Buy a radiometer please rather than softcore spreading Russian propaganda here.
👤 db48x
Depleted uranium is not stored in warehouses. It is stored as liquid UF₆ (uranium hexafluoride) in tanks.
👤 vrut25
Yes. Depleted uranium rounds have been used by NATO in previous conflicts: Serbia, Iraq, etc. It is radioactive and causes enormous harm.