Uranium and plutonium containing particles in a sea sediment sample from Thule, Greenland

• Main Authors: Moring, M., Ikäheimonen, T.K., Pöllänen, R., Ilus, E., Klemola, S., Juhanoja, J., Eriksson, M.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2001
• Subjects: Nuklear sikkerhed; Greenland; Thule Air Base; Thule Air; Thule
• Online Access: https://orbit.dtu.dk/en/publications/3b902e0f-7891-4996-8461-da5efdff2dd6; https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1010620123678

Particles composed of radioactive materials and probably originating from US nuclear weapons were identified in sea sediment samples collected from Thule, Greenland in 1997. The weapons were destroyed close to the Thule Air Base in 1968 in an aeroplane crash, which dispersed radioactive materials in the environment. The presence of particulate radioactive materials in the sediment samples was revealed by combining gamma-spectrometry and autoradiography. Isolation and separation of a radioactive particle from a bulk sample were performed using autoradiography, phosphor plate imaging and scanning electron microscopy. Using X-ray microanalysis as well as alpha and beta activity analysis, U and weapons-grade Pu were detected in the granular, brittle particle.