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UCRL-3644
A SUMMARY AND EVALUATION OF THE PROBLEM
WITH REFERENCE TO HUMANS
OF RADIOACTIVE FALLOUT FROM NUCLEAR DETONATIONS
Hardin B.
Jones*
Donner Laboratory of Biophysics and Medical Physics
University of California,. Berkeley,
January 14,
California
1957
Introduction
Nuclear detonations form radioactive isotopes in quantities so enormous that they must be reckoned in terms of many thousands of curies, the
equivalent of many pounds of the element radium. A portion of this radioactivity is dispersed into the atmosphere and subsequently falls out upon the land
and sea.
However, the vastness of the land,
air, and water of the earth pro-
vides a means of dilution so great that even these large quantities of radioactive
materials are soon reduced by distance and time to exceedingly small concentrations of radioactivity. The problem of radioactive fallout in relation to
human beings involves the need to know the quantity that becomes a part of
human environment, and to know the effect upon man of ionizing radiation from
fallout.
This summary concerns low-level world-wide fallout. It must be
recognized, however, that very intense fallout may be experienced in the
vicinity of an atomic detonation. For example;
"On March 1, 1954, an experimental thermonuclear device was exploded at the U. S. Atomic Energy Commission's Eniwetok Proving Grounds
in the Marshall Islands. Following the detonation, unexpected changes in the
wind structure deposited radioactive materials on inhabited atolls and on ships
of Joint Task Force 7, which was conducting the tests. Radiation surveys of
the areas revealed injurious radiation levels; therefore, evacuation was ordered,
and was carried out as quickly as possible with the facilities available to the
Task Force.
"Although the calculated accumulated doses to the exposed human
beings were believed to be well below levels that would produce serious injury
or any mortality [267 Marshallese received 14 rto 175 r]...
All of the exposed
individuals have recovered from the immediate effects [burns, loss of hair,
anemia] without serious sequelae. Nevertheless it is planned to evaluate the
*
With suggestions and critical review gratefully acknowledged to R. Lowry
Dobson, John W. Gofman, John H. Lawrence, Burton J. Moyer, William Siri,
Curt Stern,
1
and Edward Teller.
Quoted from Charles Dunham, A Report on the Marshallese and Americans
Accidentally Exposed to Radiation from Fallout and a Discussion of Radiation
Injury in the Human Being (United States Atomic Energy Commission, July
1956).