Polonium 210 and BA

[netibiza]

So how come I cannot take on a small bottle of drinking water (bought before departure lounge) yet one can merrily take on board Polonium 210 - am I missing something???

[jake-the-peg]

Yes you are - most likely an understanding of radiosctive source materials.

This isn't going to be a silver briefcase that humms and glows green when opened.

It's likely to have originally been a very small amount of silvery metal and it emits alpha particles.

Alpha particles are very dangerous to the inside of the body if the source is inhaled or eaten but your sikin will stop them as will a few cm of air - this means you have to get quite close to the source to see if it's radioactive or not.

You can't just walk through a departure lounge with a geiger counter. They'll have gone through those planes with a fine tooth comb to detect traces of it .

[Gromit]

The restrictions you mention are for boarding your plane in the UK If the Polonium was taken on board in Russia, there would be no such restrictions.

When I went on holiday in September there wre all kinds of stupid restiction on departure from UK, but there was nothing on my return.

So any mad terrorists can enjoy a nice holiday before they go to meet their maker.

Then again, if we weren't constantly on alert and told there are nasty people trying to kill us, then we might wonder why we are fighting two wars in sand covered lands far away.

[netibiza]

I think Spain and most of Europe have now put restriction in place, just when England is easing off.

[jake-the-peg]

There's not really any more point in trying to stop someone boarding a plane with polonium than there is trying to stop someone taking arsnic or cyanide.

Radioactive sources of alpha particles are widely available - indeed you'll find such materials in the physics labs of most schools that teach A-level and certainly in undergraduate facilities in universities.

So they're available in the UK and don't pose a threat to a plane and difficult to spot on someone if they were brining them in.

All in all it doesn't make much sense to go nuts in Heathrow with geiger counters other than as a PR exercise

[honest_joe]

Do you think we are trying to solve this murder the wrong way? The police investigation reminds me of the way the government tried to solve the Foot and Mouth problem. The initial source was traced to the next step in the chain, this led onto other chains and in the end we had 5 million leads (or dead cows).
We are doing the same with this murder. One person (the dead Russian spy) made contacts with his Russian acquaintances. They took flights to Russia and lo and behold the planes become infected leading to 3,000 more contacts. And so the list will go on.
The person who planted the polonium on the Russian spy would have made sure he was not infected by carrying it a container. We need to further our efforts to find out who this is, not tracing abortive leads.
Motive? ...to upset any fragile relations we have with Russia. Now who would do that?

[almcd007]

Diplomatic bag !!!

[anotheoldgit]

I don't know why our goverment don't call for the help of jake-the-peg he seems to have it wrapped up and under control. No need for BA to ground their planes along with the Russian ones. No need carrying on to investigate all those other venues around Mayfair, if it is as j-t-p says, it just another PR exercise. Wow, that is a relief we can now all sleep safely in our beds.

[BillyNoMates]

It's just the press blowing a minor situation out of all proportion as usual.

If they properly explained the science behind the issue then I believe people could see what a ridiculous over-reaction this has been.

Yes there are a few who have been referred for further medical checks as a precaution. The need for the BA aircraft to be grounded was for forensic investigations.

[Gromit]

I agree, it is a strange investigation and seems to be media led or fed. If it is the Russian secret service that have done it, they will never admit it and no one will ever be prosecuted for it. I imagine this story will peter out.

[netibiza]

but how did the poor dead man pass it on and how did he leave traces all over the place?

[kwicky]

How did the dead man pass it over?
Up and until he was admitted to hospital he met some Russian acquaintances. Because he was seriously ill any body fluids including Polonium were expelled. This included sweat, heavy breathing and urine. Polonium was found in all the sites he visited. He probably passed small doses on to his contacts by handshaking. These contacts flew back to Russia. thereby contaminating the planes. This does not necesarily mean that polonium originated from Russia and they will be in the clear unless proved otherwise.

[THECORBYLOON]

almcd007 Diplomatic bag? There's no need to insult netz now is there?

[jno]

'Radioactive sources of alpha particles are widely available - indeed you'll find such materials in the physics labs of most schools that teach A-level and certainly in undergraduate facilities in universities.

So they're available in the UK and don't pose a threat to a plane and difficult to spot on someone if they were brining them in.

All in all it doesn't make much sense to go nuts in Heathrow with geiger counters other than as a PR exercise '

you're absolutely right, of course, jake... it's just that you could say the same about toothpaste, and that doesn't seem to have stopped the government's acts of extreme vigilance. Why they don't save time by just arresting Muslims with clean teeth, I don't know.

[netibiza]

You are right Corby nothing diplomatic about me!!!!