Action Alert

Even if they have a successful launch, which is risky enough to start with, their plan is to have it orbit Venus and then sling shot the probe around the Earth!

(This has been elected the #1 Censored Story of 1996 by PROJECT CENSORED at SSU)

The following provided by Russell D. Hoffman
There are three RTGs. Each RTG has 10.9 Kilograms of Plutonium Dioxide -- Pu 238. Pu 238 is 280 times MORE radioactive than Pu 239. So yes, it's about 72.3 POUNDS of plutonium. No one is exaggerating the threat; in fact, it's the other way around: NASA likes to point out that it's "non-weapons grade plutonium" but neglects to mention that although it's not as good for making nuclear bombs, it's actually much, much better per pound in killing by inhalation of fine particles--just what an incineration will create.

The lift-off has certain hazards as well, which could result in the probe crashing with some incineration of the fuel and some being smashed into Earth. First Florida, then the Atlantic, then it cuts clear across Africa and it's teaming millions, over Madagascar and it's unique life forms, and so on...

But the flyby, IF it fails, will be much more devastating. And, it can fail from a number of reasons including impact with any of the millions (actually billions, but who's counting) pieces of existing man-made space debris in near-earth orbit. How likely is that? Look at NASA's data again: The space station freedom is expected to be hit by a "catastrophic piece of space debris" about once every 50 years--pretty often, really, considering man made 99% of the debris in just 30 years. Cassini can hit one of these existing pieces, and it's a crap-shoot if it will or not because NASA only tracks about 10,000 pieces and admits that much smaller pieces than they can track can destroy ANY space ship-- Cassini, Shuttle, Space Station... It's just a matter of chance. And at the speed and nearness to Earth of the Flyby, IT is the more dangerous maneuver, in my opinion.

Dr. Sternglass and many others have time and again studied the effects of extremely low levels of radiation on large populations, which is the relevant analysis you seek. NASA bases its estimates on data from HIGH dosage incidents, especially Hiroshima and Nagasiki, specifically because the LOW level research is so damning. And the relationship is not linear.

Dr. Sternglass's work is available in books and numerous refereed journals and one of his books is also available on the Internet. Please visit my web site for an interview I did (yesterday, in fact) with Dr. Sternglass which you can use to get to that information. Here's the URL of the article:
http://www.animatedsoftware.com/cassini/ster9704.htm

last updated 15-apr-97