plutonium news stories on Newser

Despite Fuel Rods, Iran Is No Closer to Bomb

Kevin Spak — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 13:11:02 CST

If you were freaking out about Iran’s recent announcement that it had developed nuclear fuel rods , relax: Tehran probably isn’t any closer to a nuclear weapon than it was before, experts tell Reuters . While spent plutonium fuel rods can be used to make bombs, the West’s concern is really concentrated...

Explosion Rocks Nuclear Waste Site in France

Kevin Spak — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 07:59:31 CDT

An explosion hit the Marcoule nuclear plant in southern France today, killing at least one person and injuring three others, the BBC reports. The site handles nuclear waste and recycles plutonium from nuclear weapons into MOX fuel, but does not include any reactors. The explosion occurred near a furnace, but...

Japanese PM: We're on 'Maximum Alert'

Kevin Spak — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 09:28:01 CDT

With fears escalating over the plutonium leaking into the soil around the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant, Japanese officials sounded a cautious note today, with Prime Minister Naoto Kan telling lawmakers that the government would “tackle the problem while in a state of maximum alert,” according to the Economic Times . “The situation...

Plutonium Seeping from Fukushima

Mon, 28 Mar 2011 23:01:20 CDT

Highly toxic plutonium is seeping from the damaged nuclear power plant in Japan's tsunami disaster zone into the soil outside, officials said Tuesday, heightening concerns about the expanding spread of radiation. Plutonium was detected at several spots outside the Fukushima plant—the first confirmed presence of the dangerously radioactive substance,...

Ahmadinejad Ramps Up Iran's Plutonium Production

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 08:37:39 CST

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ordered his country's atomic agency today to begin the production of higher enriched uranium, in a move that's likely to deepen international skepticism about Iran's real nuclear intentions. On state television, Ahmadinejad said: "God willing, 20% enrichment will start" to meet Iran's needs. The comments fly in the...

North Korea Will 'Weaponize' All Plutonium Stocks

Jess Kilby — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 04:49:46 CDT

North Korea has for the first time openly confirmed that it is seeking to enrich uranium for the development of nuclear weapons, the BBC reports. The state news agency today announced that the nation plans to “weaponize” its plutonium stocks, and will consider any “blockade” attempts by the US and...

New Reactors Could Boost Pakistan's Nuclear Arsenal

Matt Cantor — Tue, 12 May 2009 10:18:00 CDT

Pakistan is building two of the largest plutonium-producing reactors in the developing world—facilities that experts say could bolster the nuclear arsenal of a country fraught with turmoil. The US hasn’t publicly condemned the project, MSNBC reports, even though it makes Pakistan “the only country rapidly building up its nuclear...

N Korea Relaunches Nuke Plant

Jess Kilby — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 05:40:45 CDT

North Korea has begun harvesting weapons-grade plutonium from its spent nuclear fuel rods, the BBC reports. The official announcement comes on the heels of UN sanctions against three North Korean companies accused of helping the country with its long-range rocket launch earlier this month. Pyongyang called the sanctions—which freeze...

Wanted: Small Amounts of Plutonium

Harry Kimball — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 15:47:01 CST

The country is crawling with unused radioactive material, and it’s up to the little-known National Nuclear Security Administration to dispose of it, the Los Angeles Times reports. They're not after warheads, but small amounts of plutonium used in medical and technological pursuits in more than 130 countries, as even the...