Deadly Radioactive Device Goes Missing In Australia, Nuclear Body Joins The Search

A radioactive device has mysteriously disappeared in the western Australian desert, putting the entire country on alert for possible radiation poisoning.

The capsule is 8 millimetres in length and 6 mm in diameter and contains a small amount of the radioactive isotope Caesium-137. Caesium has a half-life of 30.5 years, meaning its radiation will be halved in 30 years.

The capsule contains 19-GBq (gigabecquerel, a unit of radioactive decay) of Caesium-137, which can emit ‘reasonable’ amounts of radiation, as per experts. Exposure to it can cause radiation burns or radiation sickness. If the protective casing of the capsule were to break, it could also cause contamination.

The capsule is believed to have fallen from a truck, somewhere between Newman and the city of Perth in mid-January, a distance of roughly 1,400 km. It was only found missing on 25 January.

It was being transported by a contractor working for the mining company Rio Tinto Ltd. The capsule was part of a gauge used to measure the density of iron ore feed and is widely used in mining, oil, and gas operations.

Authorities are combing across the stretch of the 1,400 km highway through the Western Australian desert, with the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency – Australia’s nuclear safety agency – joining the search on 31 January.