I have posted several times about the problems in the U.S. nuclear missile forces. The U.S. missile force is responsible for the maintenance and launch of four hundred and fifty intercontinental missiles based in North Dakota, Montana, and Wyoming. Generals have been fired for misbehavior, launch officers cannot pass certification exams, facilities are deteriorating, soldiers have been arrested for drug offenses and, in general, morale is at an all time low.
I have blogged in the past about the push by countries with nuclear industries to export nuclear technology to non-nuclear nations especially in the third world. Russia, China, the United States, Japan, France and South Korea are all engaged in fighting for export sales.
As information continues to trickle out about the April accident at Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad, New Mexico, once again I am going to offer an update. WIPP has been open for fifteen years and is the only repository used to dispose of plutonium contaminated waste from the U.S. nuclear weapons program.
I have dealt with the potential and actual impact of natural disasters such as earthquakes, tornados, hurricanes, and tidal waves on nuclear reactors. However, there is another natural danger that is not often raised with respect to endangering nuclear power plants.
Helium-3 is an isotope of helium. He-3 has two protons and one neutron. He-3 is found in the solar wind. The Earth's magnetic field pushes it away so little reaches the Earth. The Moon is thought to have significant He-3 because of billions of years of bombardment without a magnetic field to push away the He-3. When it was predicted in 1934, He-3 was thought to be radioactive.
