Health Impact of Radioactive Debris from the Satellite Cosmos 954

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
This paper described a program of laboratory and field studies undertaken to assess the health impact of radioactive debris from the re-entry of the Soviet nuclear-powered satellite, Cosmos 954, on Jan. 24, 1978. It was estimated that .apprx. 1/4 of the reactor core descended over Canada''s Northwest Territories in the form of submillimeter particles. The rest apparently remained as fine dust in the upper atmosphere. Each particle contained megabecquerel quantities of the fission products 95Zr, 95Nb, 103Ru, 106Ru, 141Ce and 144Ce, and traces of other fission and activation products. Laboratory tests indicated that these radionuclides would not dissolve significantly in drinking water supplies or in dilute acids. Contamination of air, drinking water, soil and food supplies was not detected. The dose equivalent to the GI [gastrointestinal] tract for an individual who might have inhaled or ingested a particle could have been as high as 140 mSv.

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: