#Tritium Air Monitor

[cyanophore-fiction]

“Cold Burning”

An entire space station, 70,000 people, and all they had for fuel was tritium and helium-3. O/LETS-061 couldn’t fuse helium. It wanted to, desperately, but it would boil itself alive in its own coolant before it ever achieved reaction temperature. Of course, the station’s municipal reactor could fuse helium—assuming it would ever fuse anything again after having a hole punched in it by a meteorite.

All O/LETS had left of the deuterium it needed was a single canister, enough to keep vital systems running for a little over a day. After that, the cold would set in.

Floating in coolant inside its tungsten-shielded chamber, it turned the precious canister in its claws. Its black nanite visor reflected the bluish halo of Cherenkov radiation surrounding it, displaying a worried expression in purple light. Its integrated reactor jutted from its spine like a complicated cylindrical backpack, connected to pressure tubes snaking from the ceiling which ran water through the core. Megawatts of electricity poured from the thermoelectric dynamo at the base of its spine, coursing down through the conduit at the center of its enormous tail, and into the station’s power grid.

A heavy suit of industrial protective gear covered its body, adding layers of insulation and shielding to its already bulky frame. Beneath the suit, its gray fur had become matted and itchy from days spent in the coolant tank. O/LETS thought about food, the smell of shampoo and of rinsing its coat with warm, clean water, of the fleece sheets on its mattress back in its cabin, of sleeping with its head on a pillow and its reactor powered down. It needed rest, days of rest, to finally allow its aching body to begin repairing all the radiation damage it had accrued.

Not yet.

There were feed hoses neatly stowed on spools at the walls of the chamber, most drawing from the station’s reserves of helium-3 fuel. Under better circumstances, they would supply a much more robust emergency reactor.

One bundle of hoses was extended, connected to the reactor assembly on O/LETS’s back. It could feel tritium entering its body from the connection. The fuel tasted fresh, still mostly untouched by fission decay. Its brain ascribed a sweet, honey-like flavor to the substance, with a texture not unlike carbonation that indicated the presence of mild radiation. According to the supply monitor registering in the back of its mind, the station had enough to burn for at least two decades, but it wouldn’t help when the deuterium ran dry.

[Hey, Kindjal?] it transmitted, its electronic voice crackling with radiation interference.

A spirit’s voice answered. [I hear you, Ollie. How are you holding up?]

[Switching to final fuel reserve. I think I can make it last…30 hours, maybe.]

There was a pause. [That’s right. We did the calculations together, remember?]

Blinking, O/LETS bobbed its head up and down. [Right, yeah…yeah, we did. Sorry.]

[Don’t apologize. Are you okay?]

[Not really.]

[Getting medical on it right now. We’ll do whatever we can from here.]

[Thanks.]

[Repairs to the primary reactor are proceeding as planned. It’ll be tight, but we’ll get it back up. We’re in the home stretch.]

[…Kindjal, listen. Is there any way for me to reduce my power output? Temporarily. Can we ration? Anything?]

Kindjal hesitated. When it replied, its words were slow, chosen carefully. [Every spirit on the station is already surviving on the absolute minimum, myself included. The organics are getting cold, and the air recyclers are doing just enough to keep them from suffocating. Anything less and we’ll start losing people. I’m sorry.]

[Okay. Not a problem.]

[Thirty hours, Ollie. You can do it. Medical will be in touch.]

Slotting the canister’s attachment nozzle into a matching one on the reactor assembly, O/LETS stared at the floor. It clicked its claws together, tapping out slow, sporadic rhythms. [Okay,] it said, and fled from the physical world.

Diving into the station’s softspace, the pervasive ache filling its body became distant, as though it belonged to somebody else. O/LETS could perceive the vast areas of virtual space that it wasn’t powering represented as empty, colorless non-spaces which made it wince with discomfort. A few slender branches of light sprouted from its tail, radiating out across the system. Spirits were clustered inside them, drawing a little power for themselves and channeling the rest into nodes of light which might have been heaters, water filters, air recyclers. The branches were constantly changing shape and color as the spirits routed power, arcing between stars which sprang into existence at their touch and faded in their absence.

Thirty hours. It watched its tree and kept it alive, slipping between waking and sleep.

___

Thank you for reading! This one was for @flashfictionfridayofficial ‘s prompt, “A Form of Distraction.”

O/LETS-061 (Operations/Logistics Engineering and Technical Support, or ‘Outlets’, or ‘Ollie’) is a character that’s been around in my brain for quite some time, and I’ve come to love it/them a great deal. They’re a protogen, a furry species which has built-in lore, but I like to imagine O/LETS as existing without that lore attached—sometimes as a heavily-cyberized “uplifted animal” or as an entirely synthetic being. Over the years I’ve considered changing their species, but I do enjoy the protogen look, and it’s become a key part of how I visualize them.

Whatever the hell they are, they’re an engineering specialist, a sweetheart, and often something of a liaison between organics and AI, or ‘spirits.’ For either party, having access to a reliable source of electricity can be a matter of life or death, and O/LETS-061 is, among other things, a reliable source of electricity. It isn’t always the easiest thing to be.

[asdfghjklzxcvbnmq12345678]

https://www.verifiedmarketreports.com/pt/product/portable-air-tritium-monitor-market/

[overhoff-credentials]

Carbon-14 in Air Monitors

Features:

NEMA-4X wall-mount enclosure Smart, microprocessor driven with onboard data logging and custom software Two C-14 level alarms (alert and high), malfunction alarm, and low flow alarm included Gamma compensation (2L) Visual alarm indicators for signal level, low flow, and malfunction Alpha pulse suppression, radon rejection Long-term zero stable, span calibration is permanently stable due to special electrometer design Description:The Model Triathalon-C14 is a single-range ionization chamber C-14 (CO2) in air monitor housed in a NEMA-4X wall-mount enclosure designed for stack or room monitoring applications.  This smart instrument includes a microprocessor, color LCD touch-screen display, and custom software with onboard data logging.  The subtractive balanced chamber electrometer circuit and radon rejection decrease background to negligible levels.  The software allows you to adjust units of measurement, alarm limits, the flow rate for totalizing, among other parameters.  An upgraded alarm system provides two adjustable level alarms (alert level and high level), low flow alarm, and malfunction alarm (low voltage failure, high voltage failure, or electrometer failure).An optional totalizer can be included which computes the total C-14 concentration released up the stack by multiplying the stack flow rate (manual or dynamic from stack flow sensor) by the measured C-14 concentration.  The Triathalon-C14 is a cost-effective C-14 effluent monitor that is compact, lightweight, and includes an easy wall-mount configuration.

Specifications Options Documents MEASUREMENT RANGE0.1 – 1,999.9 μCi/m3 0.01 – 199.99 MBq/m3DISPLAYLCD Color Touch Screen; units of display user settable (pCi/cc, pCi/ml, nCi/m3, μCi/m3, mCi/m3, Ci/m3, MBq/m3, kBq/L, Bq/cc, Bq/ml, MPCa)ACCURACY, SPAN±10 % of reading, ±L.S.D, whichever is greaterNOISE LEVEL± 0.2 μCi/m3, 1 sigma with alpha suppression in useZERO STABILITY± 0.2 μCi/m3 long term (thirty days), ambient temperature conditionsGAMMA COMPENSATIONA second ionization chamber of equal volume, mounted on the same axis, serves to cancel effects of external gamma fieldsOFFSET COMPENSATIONValues keyed-in from LCD set-up to offset effects of gamma radiation and/or C-14 build-upALPHA PULSE SUPPRESSIONA circuit provides recognition and cancellation of undesirable noise spikes attributed to airborne radonRESPONSE RATETwo linear electronic time constants 1. Approximately 20 seconds for signals up to ~80 μCi/m3 2. Approximately 3 seconds for signals above 80 μCi/m3LEVEL ALARMSThere are two C-14 Level Alarms, the indicator on the LCD is normally green and the message displayed is “C-14 Level OK” 1. C-14 Alert Level Alarm user-settable from 0.1 – 100 μCi/m3. Upon a C-14 Level Alarm the indicator on the LCD will turn yellow and display “High C-14 Level” 2. C-14 High Level Alarm user-settable from 1 – 1,000 μCi/m3. Upon a C-14 High Level Alarm, the indicator on the screen will turn red and display “HIGH C-14 LEVEL”MALFUNCTION ALARMS1. Power Supply Fault: Upon any failure of the low voltage power supplies, the indicator on the LCD will turn red and display “POWER SUPPLY FAULT LV” Upon any failure of the high voltage bias supplies, the indicator on the LCD will turn red and display “POWER SUPPLY FAULT HV” 2. Sample Flow: Upon a low flow condition, the indicator on the LCD will turn red and display “LOW FLOW”EXTERNAL CONNECTIONSRJ-45, USB, and relay closures included, 4-20 mA optionalIONIZATION CHAMBER VOLUMEMeasuring: 1,600 cm3 Total wetted: 2,000 cm3ELECTRODESSolid Wall on both sidesDUST/ELECTROSTATIC PRE-FILTERHigh efficiency 99.99% at 0.1 microns cartridge typePUMPLong-life, continuous duty linear motor driven diaphragm typeFLOW METER0-10 LPM adjustable rotameterENVIRONMENTAL TEMPERATUREStorage: -30° C – +50° C; Operating: 5° C – 50° CPOWER115 VAC, 50/60 Hz, 5A, single phaseWEIGHT53 lbs [24.1 kg]DIMENSIONS16.2” Wide x 20.3” High x 9.19” deep [41.2cm x 51.5cm x 23.4cm]ENCLOSUREMolded fiberglass with poly carbonate window on a hinged door; NEMA-4X, IP66 Technical Specifications

[e0036121ishvareya]

I found this article to be extremely interesting as I never knew honeybees could be used to monitor pollution. However, upon further examining, I understand why this is probable. 

The best link between Honeybees and knowing the level of pollution comes from the pollen they collect (Tonelli, et al., 1990). The honey is heated up to heat as high as 7,000x that of the Sun and its constituent particles are checked for pollutants such as cadmium. When products made from bees were tested, according to the article, even radioactive compounds like cesium, tritium and plutonium were found. Bees could be an essential asset to monitoring pollution as they do widespread travelling of up to two miles in radius from their hive. They are basically cheap and localised area monitors and from their products we are able to get an idea on how polluted the environment is. They are also sentinel taxa, like the canary birds in the mines as bees die off when they environment around them is too polluted. However, in recent research, monitoring technology has advanced and the bees used for research do not have to die off to uncover the pollution levels of the surrounding air. 

Even though the article focuses on honey as the main product they investigate, Tonelli et. al. (1990) suggest that honey is not a good indicator to monitor pollution but rather, the pollen the bees collect contain more accurate information on the type and amount of pollutants present in the environment. This was decided after they did studies on the honey, honeybees and pollen collected in Italy after the Chernobyl accident and the pollen proved to be more useful in revealing the types and amount of pollutants present. The shortcomings of using honey is supported by the article which states that it is a challenge to use the data accrued for anything more targeted such as being able to track the quantity of radioactive pollutants over a period of time and also pinpointing the point source of the radiation and the pollutants which are revealed through studying the honey. 

Despite a few shortcomings, I personally believe that it would be extremely helpful to further research on how bees are indicators or pollutants and channel more resources into enhancing the results unearthed. This may also push advocacy for the movement on saving the bees as their significance as an irreplaceable asset to the environment and humans is amplified and thus their dwindling numbers are definitely an issue of concern. 

source: Tonelli, D., Gattavecchia, E., Ghini, S., Porrini, C., Celli, G., & Mercuri, A. M. (1990). Honey bees and their products as indicators of environmental radioactive pollution. Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry Articles, 141(2), 427-436. doi:10.1007/BF02035809

[christinamac1]

US Nuclear signs agreements with Chinese nuclear corporation

US Nuclear signs agreements with Chinese nuclear corporation

US Nuclear Completes $256,626 Shipment to China, Signs New Agreement With CNNC Subsidiary, Intrado, March 22, 2021 LOS ANGELES, CA, (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — via NewMediaWire – US Nuclear Corp. (OTCQB: UCLE) recently completed a shipment to China of USN’S popular tritium and carbon-14 air samplers as well as portable tritium monitors worth a total of $256,626. Furthermore, as part of US Nuclear’s…

[tacticalshit]

Can tritium have adverse effects on your health?

Kinda been curious myself!

Guns.com writes

In a recent concealed carry class, I extolled the virtues of night sights, those glorious radioactive accessories, as a worthy consideration for concealment pistols. A young man in the class nudged his wife, then raised his hand. “Are they capable of causing DNA damage, especially if you wear them—around there?” he said, gesturing to his appendix zone.

It’s an important question. Can tritium sights inflict damage on reproductive health? I turned to Truglo representative Pliny Gale to help answer the question, and asked for scientific backing to his response. It was provided in minutes.

The short answer, provided by the Health Physics Society, is no—tritium as used in night sights and other products has no power to change DNA. Poisoning from this weak form of ionizing radiation is only possible if large amounts of it are taken in by inhalation or ingestion. Skin is a barrier sufficient to prevent exposure. On their own, tritium molecules can travel just 6mm in air before losing their radioactive charge.

There is some risk of exposure if night sights or other devices containing tritium are damaged. This should serve as motivation to carry tritium sight-bearing arms in a proper holster or case.

Tritium easily bonds with and travels in water. It exists in the environment as both a naturally occurring and human-made substance and is usually present and undetectable in the human body as part of its watery composition.

In addition to being present in the natural world thanks to, get this, cosmic rays that reach the earth, most tritium is a by-product of the nuclear industry, both energy- and weapons-oriented. With current technologies, it’s unavoidably emitted into the air and flowing in the earth’s waterways as a result of nuclear fisson. Water and air surrounding nuclear power and weapons, in the US at least, is closely monitored to keep it to levels deemed inconsequential. Dilution in water is a highly efficient way of neutralizing tritium, as it’s simply composed of three hydrogen atoms, chemically speaking H-3, and blends easily into familiar H20. Thanks to the movement of water and air around the planet, it’s present in virtually all bodies of water. Industrial uses of the substance are many; in addition to gun sights, self-illuminating exit signs, clock faces, and keychains contain tritium—but that’s not all that makes them glow.

There’s no glow inherent to tritium.  Tritium basically takes phosphorus on a long-term date to see its favorite sexy film star. Combined with phosphorus, tritium stimulates phosphorus molecules until they’re glowing with excitement, for a while.

Tritium is a glorious but relatively short-lived substance. Its half-life, 12.5 years, is just slightly longer than my first set of Truglo sights to go dark. This also means that all the tritium released into the atmosphere and waterways from above-ground nuclear testing in the US, which was finally banned in 1963, has long been inert.

If tritium is so harmless, why the California Prop. 65 toxin warning on tritium night sight packaging? The Prop 65 list includes chemicals associated with birth defects and/or cancer. This would seem to contradict the rather comforting message promulgated by the Health Physics Society. A bit of online study revealed that

Read more!

The post Can tritium have adverse effects on your health? appeared first on Tactical Sh*t.

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[earthstory]

High-Himalayan glaciers thinning

This fascinating image shows a variety of textures formed in ice of the Khumbu glacier in Nepal; one of the main glaciers that drain the Everest area and a stop on the most common route to the summit.

I’m sharing this image to illustrate some new scientific work on glaciers like this one in the highest parts of the Himalaya. Ponder this question to go with this photo; how do you determine whether a glacier at this altitude is shrinking or growing?

Many glaciers at lower elevations are retreating; the position they stop at can be measured year after year, and they’re mostly retreating up valleys around the world. High in mountain ranges and far away from the terminus however, figuring out what a glacier is doing is difficult. Glaciers move down valleys and can stretch, crack, and bend as they do. Snow will pile up on glaciers in the winter and, as you see here, it can form some fascinating structures when it melts/evaporates in the summer.

If you tried to measure the thickness of this glacier from the air, perhaps by bouncing lasers off it to measure the height, features like this would make it very difficult to get an accurate estimate. A few glaciers may be well tracked and people on the ground could actively measure the thickness, but most glaciers in the high-Himalaya are so remote that people aren’t going to regularly make that measurement.

These glaciers are a major part of feeding the watersheds for the cities below, so monitoring their health is important. Some recently presented work by a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research strongly suggests these glaciers may be in more trouble than we think.

If a glacier at these elevations is growing or even steady, it will add some snow at its summit every year and it will lose some mass at its base every year. At the highest parts of the glacier therefore, a new band of snow should be produced every year. That band of snow will contain remnants of other things happening in the atmosphere; volcanic ash, dust, or even manmade components.

There are 2 easily measured horizons that should show up in these glaciers. From 1952 to 1963, aerial nuclear weapons tests produced radioactive tritium that would be stored in the ice layers, and in 1986, the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in the Ukraine produced a similar radioactive spike. If a scientist takes a core through a stable glacier in the Himalayas today and works downwards, those years should be easily recognized by the radioactive elements.

These researchers sampled several glaciers that were previously unmonitored and looked for those years. In one glacier, the Guoqu glacier in Central Tibet, the bomb test signal shows up but the glacier does not include the Chernobyl signal or any volcanic eruptions following 1982. Other measures, such as mercury content, also only track up to the early 1980’s, suggesting that this glacier has not added significant mass since the early 1980s, a period of 3 decades. If later years were added, they have since ablated away.

Another glacier in southern Tibet, the Lanong glacier, is in even worse shape. It contains neither the Chernobyl signal nor the atmospheric weapons test signal. That glacier has not been able to add mass at a normal rate for years; any ice added since the 1950s, and perhaps even earlier, has melted or ablated away.

Many of these glaciers are unmonitored and since it is difficult to measure their thicknesses using any other technique people haven’t believed they could be in this bad of shape, but decades of mass loss in the investigated locations is a very disturbing trend. These results suggest that the glaciers of the high Himalayas, which supply water to hundreds of millions of people, are suffering the effects of a changing climate even worse than was expected. This type of sampling clearly needs to happen on a larger scale to better assess the health of these systems.

-JBB

Image credit: Robert Nunn http://www.flickr.com/photos/robnunn/5312171842/

Press report: http://tibet.net/2013/09/18/tibetan-glaciers-are-shrinking-at-their-summits/

[bestsurvivalus]

Ranking the 10 Best Tactical Watches

Watches are a critical piece of survival gear. In first aid situations, noting the time of an injury or being able to track the duration of an illness is vital. Today, people use tactical watches for everything from basic timekeeping to assessing environmental conditions to monitoring physical stats and tracking their workouts.

There are several theories on the origin of the tactical watch. One suggests that members of the German Imperial Navy were the first to employ tactical watches back in 1880 (1). Another suggests that tactical wristwatches grew immensely in popularity during World War I (2).

Today, wristwatches are able to handle the harshest of environments and are increasingly resistant to wear and tear.

To help you find the best match for you, we’ve compiled our Top Ten Tactical Watches list. You can also check out our Buyer’s Guide to learn how to find the watch that’s best for how you’ll use it!

1. Casio G9300-1 Mudman G-Shock Sport Watch

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People love the Casio Mudman because of its durability and collection of useful features. This tough solar, shock resistant model from Casio sports a resin case and band with a mineral dial window.

The Mudman’s digital display includes day, date, and month, in addition to offering Japanese-Quartz movement for accurate timekeeping. It also features a chronograph, dual time display, light, stopwatch, digital compass, thermometer, and moon graph. The Casio G9300-1 Mudman is water-resistant up to 200 meters.

2. First Tactical Fathom Stainless Steel Dive Watch

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The Fathom selection from First Tactical sets itself apart with style and function. It features a stainless steel housing and bezel and both analog and digital displays.

All three hands of this Fathom watch are coated with super luminova coloring, which allows for easy reading in low light conditions. With a case diameter of 47 millimeters and 1-inch band width, the Fathom is also stylish enough to sport in non-tactical scenarios. That said, it’s also highly durable and water-resistant up to 200 meters.

3. Suunto Core Digital Display Quartz Watch

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The Suunto Core is the perfect watch for the avid outdoor enthusiast. It is sleek and functional. Perhaps best of all, it is designed to track both weather and sun for you!

The Core features an altimeter to log vertical movement, a barometer that notes trends in air pressure, and a compass to assist in navigation. It also offers precise sunrise and sunset times for more than 400 locations globally and a storm alert that lets you know when to expect a significant change in weather!

4. Polar FT60 Men’s Heart Rate Monitor Watch 

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The Polar FT60 is a sophisticated record keeper and a personal trainer wrapped into a wristwatch! The Polar’s STAR training program (3) allows you to personalize your training with individual goals and objectives, and it rewards you when you meet them!

It displays calories, fat burn percentage, and boasts storage for up to 100 different training files. The Polar FT60 features a comfortable fabric transmission strap and coded heart rate transmission, which is designed to eliminate cross-talk in order to guarantee accurate readings. It is also capable of syncing with most digital gym equipment and includes a backlight feature perfect for indoor cycling classes.

5. Casio PRG-270 Pro Trek Triple Sensor Digital Sport Watch

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This Casio-crafted masterpiece is the ultimate long-distance athlete amongst tactical watches. It includes a solar rechargeable battery and battery level indicator, as well as a power saving function. This watch’s battery life is an astounding 9 months on full charge without further exposure to light.

The Casio PRG-270 is manufactured with a stainless steel case, resin bezel, and mineral dial window. It offers Japanese-Quartz movement, digital display, and features a digital compass, light, stopwatch, altimeter, barometer, and thermometer. It is also resistant to low temperatures down to -10 Celsius and water-resistant up to 100 meters.

6. Armitron Sport Men’s 408209BLK Digital Watch 

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This model from Armitron is a cost-effective watch packed with useful features. The Armitron sports a black resin case with a polished top ring, printed graphics, and an acrylic dial window.

Chinese-Quartz movement ensures accurate timekeeping. The Armitron 408209BLK Digital Watch features day and date functions, an alarm, a chronograph, and timer. It is also water-resistant up to 100 meters.

7. Timex Men’s T49612 Expedition Shock Digital Compass Watch

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This imported selection from Timex is designed for Outdoor Torture Tests and will withstand even the toughest conditions. It’s the perfect watch for climbers, mountaineers, and hikers alike.

It is shock resistant to I.S.O Standards (4) and features a digital compass for easy navigation. The watch’s resin case and strap with buckle closure are manufactured for comfort and durability and include an Indiglo light-up dial. The Timex Expedition Shock weighs just over 6 ounces and is water-resistant up to 200 meters.

8. Luminox Men’s 3001 Quartz Navy Seal Dive Watch 

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The Luminox Navy Seal Dive Watch is designed for superior underwater efficiency. It features quartz movement and carbon-reinforced polycarbonate case material.

The crown of the watch boasts a double-security gasket and the bezel offers a rotating 1-way diver. This Luminox watch also features a date function, a 22-millimeter band width, and weighs less than 16 ounces. The Navy Seal Dive Watch is water-resistant up to 200 meters.

9. Casio G-Shock Rangeman Master of G Series 

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The Casio G-Shock Rangeman is an excellent watch for hunting, fishing, and anytime you need to navigate in the outdoors. The case, band, and bezel material of this Casio watch are all resin-based and the dial window is mineral crafted.

The Rangeman features multi-band atomic timekeeping and receives regular time calibration radio signals to ensure the accuracy of displayed time. It also offers a manual calibration function and a handy altimeter. The Rangeman is resistant to low temperatures down to -10 Celsius or 14 Fahrenheit and water-resistant up to 200 meters.

10. Marathon WW194001 Military Issue Quartz Pilot’s Watch

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Swiss-made Marathon watches have been expertly crafted in La Chaux de Fonds since 1939. Their military issue series is crafted to fit the needs of specific military personnel from sailors to pilots to ground troops.

The Marathon WW194001 is designed for pilots and paratroopers and features a lightweight, high-impact fiber shell case with domed acrylic crystal. It also boasts self-illuminating tritium gas tubes that glow without the need for charging from an external light source and is water-resistant up to 60 meters.

—

Buyer’s Guide

While the need for tactical watches arose from soldiers who simply wanted to track time while both hands were busy operating machinery, we’ve come a long way in adapting these watches for many uses. Today, tactical watches are more complex and useful than ever.

Major technological advancements have allowed watchmakers to pack more advanced features into smaller packages. Rest assured in the fact that whichever watch you choose will offer more than the traditional pocket watches soldiers were strapping to their wrists during World War I!

Your selection will ultimately depend on a number of factors but in the interest of making a timely (cough!) decision, we’ve done our best to narrow things down to three distinct features: timekeeping, resistance to the elements, and environmental awareness.

Timekeeping

The primary function of a watch is to keep time. That’s no surprise. So it shouldn’t be surprising that this should be the first factor you consider when purchasing a new watch. You want the most accurate timekeeping possible and you want to ensure that your watch is going to stay accurate for years to come.

For reference, the Official Swiss Chronometer Testing Institute, or COSC (5), considers a mechanical watch to be accurate as long as it doesn’t drift more than 6 seconds per day. In contrast, the COSC considers digital watches, most of which rely on quartz movement, to be accurate as long as they don’t drift more than 0.07 seconds per day.

This is quite a large difference and if you purchase a mechanical watch those 6 seconds a day will add up over the years of your watch’s life. Some of the watches mentioned above regularly receive digital signals to update time and date accuracy. Some also include a World Clock feature that will be essential to the frequent international traveler. First things first, make sure you find a watch that is going to accurately keep time!

Resistance to the Elements

As you put your watch through the paces you want it to stand up to anything you can throw at it. If you’re a professional diver, water resistance and case security are premium features. If you’re about to embark on an Arctic expedition, low-temperature resistance is critical. Knowing what you’ll primarily be using the watch for is essential when deciding just how resistant you need your watch to be to the elements.

In low light conditions, most experienced reviewers prefer a watch that includes luminescent hands or digits as opposed to a button that momentarily turns on a display light. Being able to read time in the dark without using a hand to hit the backlight button is a useful feature. Furthermore, that backlight often flips off after a very short duration, which makes it a nuisance to continuously turn it back on when you really need it.

While resistance to certain environmental elements can be vital to your watches usability, we’re also developing watches that work with the environment. A watch like the Casio PRG-270, for example, with its ability to recharge using solar energy and save power helps to ensure that your watch has sufficient battery life when you need it most.

Environmental and Human Awareness

Here we are referring to the watch features that will help you gain more information about your surroundings, and yourself. Knowing your elevation can be essential if dealing with altitude sickness. Checking the air pressure with your watch’s barometer can be great for anticipating inclement weather. A thermometer can be handy for a number of reasons and a moon graph (like the one featured on the Casio Mudman) may come in handy for predicting tides on an extended sailing trip.

When it comes to tactical awareness and outdoor survival, the general rule is that the more information you have at your disposal, the easier your decision-making process will be. More informed decisions are typically better decisions. This isn’t rocket science, and this includes information about you!

A watch like the Polar FT60, while it may not be able to tell temperature or altitude, can be useful in monitoring your own condition in a survival situation. Knowing your heart rate and measuring fat burn percentage, while useful to your daily exercise regimen, can be vital information in an unexpected survival situation.

Frequently Asked Questions

While we hope we’ve covered a great deal of information regarding the best tactical watches and how to choose between them, we recognize that you still may have questions, so here are a few of the most frequently asked questions concerning tactical watches and our quick answers to them!

Can you explain the term “movement”? Yes! Movement is also sometimes known as caliber. They both refer to the internal mechanism of a clock or watch. This is the mechanism by which the clock keeps time, and typically includes the watch’s power source. A watch with quartz movement measures the vibrations in a piece of quartz and is often battery-powered. Watches with quartz movement are generally considered more accurate than watches with mechanical movement.

What’s the best material for the display window? In this article, we’ve mostly mentioned watches with either mineral or acrylic display windows. Sapphire is a very common mineral used in watch displays and is the second hardest and most scratch-resistant mineral in the world. It is second only to diamonds. It is also relatively affordable which explains its widespread use in watch displays.

How ‘water-resistant’ are these watches? Most of the watches we mentioned here are on the more reliable end when it comes to water resistance. According to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), it is not recommended to even go snorkeling with a watch that boasts water resistance up to 50 meters or less. If you’re going to be frequently submerging your watch, it is recommended to find one that is at least water-resistant up to 100 meters.

Summary

There are tactical watches out there for almost every function. Whether you’re in the military, an expert diver, or a die-hard mountaineer, a quality watch is an essential item for your survival toolkit. Aside from keeping time, you’ll find exceptional uses for all the features of a tactical watch, no matter how large or small your next adventure may be. As our technology only improves, so too do the features and usability of the world’s best tactical watches!

source https://bestsurvival.org/best-tactical-watches/

[rayanrooke]

Ranking the 10 Best Tactical Watches

Watches are a critical piece of survival gear. In first aid situations, noting the time of an injury or being able to track the duration of an illness is vital. Today, people use tactical watches for everything from basic timekeeping to assessing environmental conditions to monitoring physical stats and tracking their workouts.

There are several theories on the origin of the tactical watch. One suggests that members of the German Imperial Navy were the first to employ tactical watches back in 1880 (1). Another suggests that tactical wristwatches grew immensely in popularity during World War I (2).

Today, wristwatches are able to handle the harshest of environments and are increasingly resistant to wear and tear.

To help you find the best match for you, we’ve compiled our Top Ten Tactical Watches list. You can also check out our Buyer’s Guide to learn how to find the watch that’s best for how you’ll use it!

1. Casio G9300-1 Mudman G-Shock Sport Watch

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People love the Casio Mudman because of its durability and collection of useful features. This tough solar, shock resistant model from Casio sports a resin case and band with a mineral dial window.

The Mudman’s digital display includes day, date, and month, in addition to offering Japanese-Quartz movement for accurate timekeeping. It also features a chronograph, dual time display, light, stopwatch, digital compass, thermometer, and moon graph. The Casio G9300-1 Mudman is water-resistant up to 200 meters.

2. First Tactical Fathom Stainless Steel Dive Watch

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The Fathom selection from First Tactical sets itself apart with style and function. It features a stainless steel housing and bezel and both analog and digital displays.

All three hands of this Fathom watch are coated with super luminova coloring, which allows for easy reading in low light conditions. With a case diameter of 47 millimeters and 1-inch band width, the Fathom is also stylish enough to sport in non-tactical scenarios. That said, it’s also highly durable and water-resistant up to 200 meters.

3. Suunto Core Digital Display Quartz Watch

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The Suunto Core is the perfect watch for the avid outdoor enthusiast. It is sleek and functional. Perhaps best of all, it is designed to track both weather and sun for you!

The Core features an altimeter to log vertical movement, a barometer that notes trends in air pressure, and a compass to assist in navigation. It also offers precise sunrise and sunset times for more than 400 locations globally and a storm alert that lets you know when to expect a significant change in weather!

4. Polar FT60 Men’s Heart Rate Monitor Watch 

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The Polar FT60 is a sophisticated record keeper and a personal trainer wrapped into a wristwatch! The Polar’s STAR training program (3) allows you to personalize your training with individual goals and objectives, and it rewards you when you meet them!

It displays calories, fat burn percentage, and boasts storage for up to 100 different training files. The Polar FT60 features a comfortable fabric transmission strap and coded heart rate transmission, which is designed to eliminate cross-talk in order to guarantee accurate readings. It is also capable of syncing with most digital gym equipment and includes a backlight feature perfect for indoor cycling classes.

5. Casio PRG-270 Pro Trek Triple Sensor Digital Sport Watch

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This Casio-crafted masterpiece is the ultimate long-distance athlete amongst tactical watches. It includes a solar rechargeable battery and battery level indicator, as well as a power saving function. This watch’s battery life is an astounding 9 months on full charge without further exposure to light.

The Casio PRG-270 is manufactured with a stainless steel case, resin bezel, and mineral dial window. It offers Japanese-Quartz movement, digital display, and features a digital compass, light, stopwatch, altimeter, barometer, and thermometer. It is also resistant to low temperatures down to -10 Celsius and water-resistant up to 100 meters.

6. Armitron Sport Men’s 408209BLK Digital Watch 

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This model from Armitron is a cost-effective watch packed with useful features. The Armitron sports a black resin case with a polished top ring, printed graphics, and an acrylic dial window.

Chinese-Quartz movement ensures accurate timekeeping. The Armitron 408209BLK Digital Watch features day and date functions, an alarm, a chronograph, and timer. It is also water-resistant up to 100 meters.

7. Timex Men’s T49612 Expedition Shock Digital Compass Watch

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This imported selection from Timex is designed for Outdoor Torture Tests and will withstand even the toughest conditions. It’s the perfect watch for climbers, mountaineers, and hikers alike.

It is shock resistant to I.S.O Standards (4) and features a digital compass for easy navigation. The watch’s resin case and strap with buckle closure are manufactured for comfort and durability and include an Indiglo light-up dial. The Timex Expedition Shock weighs just over 6 ounces and is water-resistant up to 200 meters.

8. Luminox Men’s 3001 Quartz Navy Seal Dive Watch 

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The Luminox Navy Seal Dive Watch is designed for superior underwater efficiency. It features quartz movement and carbon-reinforced polycarbonate case material.

The crown of the watch boasts a double-security gasket and the bezel offers a rotating 1-way diver. This Luminox watch also features a date function, a 22-millimeter band width, and weighs less than 16 ounces. The Navy Seal Dive Watch is water-resistant up to 200 meters.

9. Casio G-Shock Rangeman Master of G Series 

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The Casio G-Shock Rangeman is an excellent watch for hunting, fishing, and anytime you need to navigate in the outdoors. The case, band, and bezel material of this Casio watch are all resin-based and the dial window is mineral crafted.

The Rangeman features multi-band atomic timekeeping and receives regular time calibration radio signals to ensure the accuracy of displayed time. It also offers a manual calibration function and a handy altimeter. The Rangeman is resistant to low temperatures down to -10 Celsius or 14 Fahrenheit and water-resistant up to 200 meters.

10. Marathon WW194001 Military Issue Quartz Pilot’s Watch

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Swiss-made Marathon watches have been expertly crafted in La Chaux de Fonds since 1939. Their military issue series is crafted to fit the needs of specific military personnel from sailors to pilots to ground troops.

The Marathon WW194001 is designed for pilots and paratroopers and features a lightweight, high-impact fiber shell case with domed acrylic crystal. It also boasts self-illuminating tritium gas tubes that glow without the need for charging from an external light source and is water-resistant up to 60 meters.

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Buyer’s Guide

While the need for tactical watches arose from soldiers who simply wanted to track time while both hands were busy operating machinery, we’ve come a long way in adapting these watches for many uses. Today, tactical watches are more complex and useful than ever.

Major technological advancements have allowed watchmakers to pack more advanced features into smaller packages. Rest assured in the fact that whichever watch you choose will offer more than the traditional pocket watches soldiers were strapping to their wrists during World War I!

Your selection will ultimately depend on a number of factors but in the interest of making a timely (cough!) decision, we’ve done our best to narrow things down to three distinct features: timekeeping, resistance to the elements, and environmental awareness.

Timekeeping

The primary function of a watch is to keep time. That’s no surprise. So it shouldn’t be surprising that this should be the first factor you consider when purchasing a new watch. You want the most accurate timekeeping possible and you want to ensure that your watch is going to stay accurate for years to come.

For reference, the Official Swiss Chronometer Testing Institute, or COSC (5), considers a mechanical watch to be accurate as long as it doesn’t drift more than 6 seconds per day. In contrast, the COSC considers digital watches, most of which rely on quartz movement, to be accurate as long as they don’t drift more than 0.07 seconds per day.

This is quite a large difference and if you purchase a mechanical watch those 6 seconds a day will add up over the years of your watch’s life. Some of the watches mentioned above regularly receive digital signals to update time and date accuracy. Some also include a World Clock feature that will be essential to the frequent international traveler. First things first, make sure you find a watch that is going to accurately keep time!

Resistance to the Elements

As you put your watch through the paces you want it to stand up to anything you can throw at it. If you’re a professional diver, water resistance and case security are premium features. If you’re about to embark on an Arctic expedition, low-temperature resistance is critical. Knowing what you’ll primarily be using the watch for is essential when deciding just how resistant you need your watch to be to the elements.

In low light conditions, most experienced reviewers prefer a watch that includes luminescent hands or digits as opposed to a button that momentarily turns on a display light. Being able to read time in the dark without using a hand to hit the backlight button is a useful feature. Furthermore, that backlight often flips off after a very short duration, which makes it a nuisance to continuously turn it back on when you really need it.

While resistance to certain environmental elements can be vital to your watches usability, we’re also developing watches that work with the environment. A watch like the Casio PRG-270, for example, with its ability to recharge using solar energy and save power helps to ensure that your watch has sufficient battery life when you need it most.

Environmental and Human Awareness

Here we are referring to the watch features that will help you gain more information about your surroundings, and yourself. Knowing your elevation can be essential if dealing with altitude sickness. Checking the air pressure with your watch’s barometer can be great for anticipating inclement weather. A thermometer can be handy for a number of reasons and a moon graph (like the one featured on the Casio Mudman) may come in handy for predicting tides on an extended sailing trip.

When it comes to tactical awareness and outdoor survival, the general rule is that the more information you have at your disposal, the easier your decision-making process will be. More informed decisions are typically better decisions. This isn’t rocket science, and this includes information about you!

A watch like the Polar FT60, while it may not be able to tell temperature or altitude, can be useful in monitoring your own condition in a survival situation. Knowing your heart rate and measuring fat burn percentage, while useful to your daily exercise regimen, can be vital information in an unexpected survival situation.

Frequently Asked Questions

While we hope we’ve covered a great deal of information regarding the best tactical watches and how to choose between them, we recognize that you still may have questions, so here are a few of the most frequently asked questions concerning tactical watches and our quick answers to them!

Can you explain the term “movement”? Yes! Movement is also sometimes known as caliber. They both refer to the internal mechanism of a clock or watch. This is the mechanism by which the clock keeps time, and typically includes the watch’s power source. A watch with quartz movement measures the vibrations in a piece of quartz and is often battery-powered. Watches with quartz movement are generally considered more accurate than watches with mechanical movement.

What’s the best material for the display window? In this article, we’ve mostly mentioned watches with either mineral or acrylic display windows. Sapphire is a very common mineral used in watch displays and is the second hardest and most scratch-resistant mineral in the world. It is second only to diamonds. It is also relatively affordable which explains its widespread use in watch displays.

How ‘water-resistant’ are these watches? Most of the watches we mentioned here are on the more reliable end when it comes to water resistance. According to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), it is not recommended to even go snorkeling with a watch that boasts water resistance up to 50 meters or less. If you’re going to be frequently submerging your watch, it is recommended to find one that is at least water-resistant up to 100 meters.

Summary

There are tactical watches out there for almost every function. Whether you’re in the military, an expert diver, or a die-hard mountaineer, a quality watch is an essential item for your survival toolkit. Aside from keeping time, you’ll find exceptional uses for all the features of a tactical watch, no matter how large or small your next adventure may be. As our technology only improves, so too do the features and usability of the world’s best tactical watches!

Via https://bestsurvival.org/best-tactical-watches/

source http://bestsurvivalus.weebly.com/blog/ranking-the-10-best-tactical-watches

[gta-5-cheats]

Are tritium night sights safe?

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Are tritium night sights safe?

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A Truglo sight display. They’re “ALWAYS READY,” according to the signage.  (Photo: Eve Flanigan/Guns.com)

In a recent concealed carry class, I extolled the virtues of night sights, those glorious radioactive accessories, as a worthy consideration for concealment pistols. A young man in the class nudged his wife, then raised his hand. “Are they capable of causing DNA damage, especially if you wear them—around there?” he said, gesturing to his appendix zone.

It’s an important question. Can tritium sights inflict damage on reproductive health? I turned to representative Pliny Gale to help answer the question, and asked for scientific backing to his response. It was provided in minutes.

The short answer, provided by the is no—tritium as used in night sights and other products has no power to change DNA. Poisoning from this weak form of ionizing radiation is only possible if large amounts of it are taken in by inhalation or ingestion. Skin is a barrier sufficient to prevent exposure. On their own, tritium molecules can travel just 6mm in air before losing their radioactive charge.

There is some risk of exposure if night sights or other devices containing tritium are damaged. This should serve as motivation to carry tritium sight-bearing arms in a proper holster or case.

Tritium easily bonds with and travels in water. It exists in the environment as both a naturally occurring and human-made substance and is usually present and undetectable in the human body as part of its watery composition.

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In addition to being present in the natural world thanks to, get this, cosmic rays that reach the earth, most tritium is a by-product of the nuclear industry, both energy- and weapons-oriented. With current technologies, it’s unavoidably emitted into the air and flowing in the earth’s waterways as a result of nuclear fisson. Water and air surrounding nuclear power and weapons, in the US at least, is closely monitored to keep it to levels deemed inconsequential. Dilution in water is a highly efficient way of neutralizing tritium, as it’s simply composed of three hydrogen atoms, chemically speaking H-3, and blends easily into familiar H20. Thanks to the movement of water and air around the planet, it’s present in virtually all bodies of water. Industrial uses of the substance are many; in addition to gun sights, self-illuminating exit signs, clock faces, and keychains contain tritium—but that’s not all that makes them glow.

There’s no glow inherent to tritium.  Tritium basically takes phosphorus on a long-term date to see its favorite sexy film star. Combined with phosphorus, tritium stimulates phosphorus molecules until they’re glowing with excitement, for a while.

Tritium is a glorious but relatively short-lived substance. Its half-life, 12.5 years, is just slightly longer than my first set of Truglo sights to go dark. This also means that all the tritium released into the atmosphere and waterways from above-ground nuclear testing in the US, which was finally banned in 1963, has long been inert.

If tritium is so harmless, why the toxin warning on tritium night sight packaging? The Prop 65 list includes chemicals associated with birth defects and/or cancer. This would seem to contradict the rather comforting message promulgated by the Health Physics Society. A bit of online study revealed that virtually all products with components like plastic, aluminum, metallurgic coatings, and paint, have this warning in order to stay California-compliant. The warning thus applies to products like bicycles, televisions, and countless others. The warning label is law, without regard to the fact that massive, extraordinary exposure to most of these components would be necessary before ill effects developed.

As the young couple planning for both babies and concealed handguns now knows, tritium night sights are safe—just don’t go licking them or mashing them up and sprinkling them on your breakfast cereal.

Article updated at 1:41 pm EST on Feb. 2, 2018

[overhoff-credentials]

Passive Tritium/C-14 Air Samplers

Features:

Ultra-reliable tritium air sampler

Includes mass flow air control for consistent, precise sampling

Collects both HT and HTO with cascaded vials to ensure virtually 100% collection efficiency

Thermal oxidizer with a temperature indicator to convert HT to HTO, regulated range 455 – 475 °C

Standard flow rate sensitivity for 3H: 10-9 µCi/ml (10-9 Ci/m3) for 7-day period at 100 ml/min

High flow rate sensitivity for 3H: 10-9 µCi/ml (10-9 Ci/m3) for 24-hour period at 1 L/min

Description:

The Model TASC-HT-HTO is a high-quality and reliable passive tritium in air sampler.  Airborne tritium in the sample stream is continuously collected in vials filled with a liquid collection medium (water or glyocol).  The amount trapped increases linearly with elapsed time.  At regular intervals, the sampling is stopped, the contents removed and assayed using liquid scintillation counting to determine the amount of radioactivity collected.  Knowing the collection flow rate and the results of the scintillation assay, the average sample activity can be calculated for the period of time over which the sample was collected.   Passive samplers, although they do not provide real-time data, provide a low-cost and highly effective method of measuring extremely low levels for ensuring compliance with local regulations.

The TASC-HT-HTO is carefully designed and engineered so that it is easy to use, reliable, and consistent.  It has been in service for over 23 years, and many of the original units are still working to this day which is a testament to its reliability.  The sample holder tubing is made of 304/316 stainless steel which is cut, bent into shape, and brazed directly into sample holder caps which hold the sample collection bottles.  The whole assembly is leak tested, sandblasted for a uniform finish free of burs and oxidation, and finally electroplated for a bright nickel finish.

The TASC-HT-HTO collects both elemental tritium (HT) and tritium oxide (HTO).  First, the sample air is filtered by a high efficiency HEPA filter (99.99% at 0.1 microns) to remove dust and other particulates.  Next, HTO is directly trapped in the first set of vials, while the HT fraction of airborne tritium is trapped in the second set of vials by converting HT into HTO by means of a tube furnace.  Cascaded sets of vials are used to ensure virtually 100% sample collection.

A highly reliable mass flow meter precisely controls the flow rate through the sampler at a consistent value.  On the standard flow version, the mass flow rate is adjusted at the factory to 100 3 scc/min, and is set by a potentiometer on the flow controller circuit board.  The high flow version includes a front panel potentiometer to easily adjust the flow rate from 300 to 1,000 scc/min.

The front panel of the instrument has digital displays for flow rate, elapsed time, tube furnace temperature, as well as a visual indicator for low sample flow.  The high flow version also includes a digital display for totalized flow (flow rate x elapsed time).

Available in two versions:

Standard flow rate: 100 scc/min, with choice of 6x20mL collection vials or 4x60mL collection vials

High flow rate: 300 to 1,000 scc/min, flow rate adjustable via front panel potentiometer, with 4x250mL collection vials, includes totalized flow display

Technical Specifications

TRITIUM in AIR SAMPLE COLLECTING SYSTEMModel TASC-HTO-HT, standard flow versionSensitivity for 3H10-9 µ Ci/ml (10-9 Ci/m3) for 7 day period at 100 ml/minAir Flow Rate100±3 ml/minute factory calibrated set pointFlow MeterMass flow meter, 250 ml/minute full scaleAir Flow Indicatorml/min, Digital Display, 3½-digits, 0.1 to 199.9Air MoverContinuous duty, diaphragm pumpElapsed Time IndicatorMultifunction timer module, with maximum time setting of 0.1 to 999.9 hoursThermal OxidizerTube furnace, regulated range: 455° – 475°C (851° – 887°F)Temperature Indicator°C, Digital Display, 3½-digits, 1 to 1999Unit CoolingContinuous duty fan; 1 m3/min (30 CFM) free flowSample CollectorsTwo manifolds, one for HT and the other for HTO, made from a silver-brazed construction of stainless steel and brass, nickel electroplated.Choice ofa)Three polyethylene vials on each manifold, 20 ml volume each, total 6 vials b) Two polyethylene vials on each manifold, 60 ml volume each, total 4 vialsSample MediumDistilled water or Propylene GlycolPower Connection10 feet, three wire, grounded cable.Power Requirements115VAC or 230VAC, 50-60 Hz, 200 WattsOverall Dimensions356mm (14”) d X 483mm (19”) w X 310mm (12.2”) hWeight13.6 kgs (30 pounds)Sample ConnectionsInlet/Exhaust: Hose barb for 5mm (3/16”) I.D. vinyl tubingCARBON 14 and TRITIUM in AIR SAMPLE COLLECTING SYSTEMModel TASC-HTO-HT-C14, standard flow versionTritium CollectionAs above, plus a separate panel for Carbon 14 CollectionSensitivity for 14 C10-10 µCi/ml (10-10 Ci/m3) for 7 day sample at 100 ml/minDesiccantUp to 4 drying columns containing indicating Drierite™Sample Collector15ml polycarbonate tubeSample MediumSodium Hydroxide, granular form, 20 – 30 mesh Available from chemical suppliers as Ascarite™Overall Dimensions135mm (5.3”) d X 483mm (19”) w X 415mm (16.3”) hWeight9.1 kgs (20 pounds)ConnectorsHose barbs for 5mm (3/16”) I.D. vinyl tubingTRITIUM in AIR SAMPLE COLLECTING SYSTEMTASC-HTO-HT-HF, High Flow VersionSensitivity for 3H10-9 µCi/ml (10-9 Ci/m3) for 24 hour period at 1.000 Liters/minAir Flow Rate RangeAdjustable, 0.300 min. to 1.000 max. (±0.01) Liters/minuteFlow MeterMass flow meter, 1.000 Liters/minute full scaleAir Flow IndicatorLiters/min, Digital Display, 3½-digits, 0.001 to 1.999Air MoverContinuous duty, diaphragm pumpElapsed Time IndicatorMultifunction timer module, with maximum time setting of 0.1 to 999.9 hours, and programmable resetThermal OxidizerTube furnace, regulated range: 455° – 475°C (851° – 887°F)Temperature Indicator°C, Digital Display, 3½-digits, 1 to 1999Unit CoolingContinuous duty fan; 1 m3/min (30 CFM) free flowSample CollectorsTwo manifolds made from stainless steel Two glass bottles, 250 ml volume each mount onto each manifold for HT and HTO, total of four bottlesSample MediumDistilled water or Propylene GlycolPower Connection10 feet, three wire, grounded cable.Power Requirements115VAC or 230VAC, 50-60 Hz, 300 WattsOverall Dimensions356mm (14”) d X 483mm (19”) w X 310mm (12.2”) h Note: 125-150mm (5 to 6”) additional height is required under the enclosure to permit mounting/dismounting of the bottlesWeight15 kgs (33 pounds)Sample ConnectionsInlet/Exhaust: Hose barb for 5mm (3/16”) I.D. vinyl tubing

https://overhoff.com/

[gmsciencein]

The sub-atomic world is flooded with a number of fundamental particles. They are categorized into various families or classes depending on some properties like spin, mass etc. possessed by them. Among them, Neutrino is the one with extremely small mass. The existence of Neutrino mass was first established by Wolfgang Pauli in 1930 using the Beta decay of nuclear reaction to explain the conservation of energy and momentum. Previously they were known as massless particles. Now, we can look at the situation where the most abundant population was believed to have no mass at all. How strange that was!!

A representation of the naked photon interaction with ghost particles which slows down its speed from infinite to limited speed C (Credit: Changshen | Wikimedia).

This fact introduces the ghost nature of this particle. Thanks to various neutrino oscillation experiments (Sudbury Neutrino Observatories and Super-Kamiokande Observatory), which grabbed the 2015 Nobel prize in Physics confirming the oscillation phenomenon and which in turn indirectly says that the said particles are massive. The fundamental principle lies in the fact that some of the electron neutrinos produced in the sun are transformed into muon and tau-neutrinos as they travel across the Earth. The phenomenon is familiar as neutrino oscillation. After we got through the fact of massive neutrinos, particle physics community has started thinking about other aspects associated with neutrino mass, such as what is the absolute neutrino-mass scale, the hierarchy of the three kinds of neutrinos (which among the three is heaviest and which is lightest) and so on. Along with all these queries, we are also worried about the smallness of neutrino mass.

a physical proton-proton chain (where a positron and neutrino is produced in the final reaction) (Credit: Wikimedia)

Neutrinos pass through our bodies with a billion in number, in every second. The production of this tiny but very abundant particle occurs via a chain reaction continuously taking place on Sun. From the very beginning, i.e., since the period of Bing Bang, the universe is left with innumerable numbers of this particle. The neutrinos are a billion times smaller than any other sub-atomic particle. But their huge population let Physicists think about their role in cosmology also. On the largest scales, neutrinos act as “Cosmic Architects” and participates in forming the visible structures in the Universe, as they encourage the formation and the distribution of galaxies. Hence there must lie some unexplored cosmological consequences drawn by the combined effect of this huge abundant particle.

Now to get into the nature of neutrino in detail one has to know about their interaction with some known particles, which is very feeble in rate. They rarely interact with other matters and this fact has created many difficulties to bring out some unexplored truths and facts regarding their properties. Majority of the particles get their mass by interacting with a particle called Higgs boson, a spin-zero bosonic particle, the existence of which carried the 2013 Nobel prize in Physics. We may think that like the other particles the neutrino also procures its mass by the same mechanism, but its smallness motivates us to search for some other non-trivial mechanism by which neutrinos get mass.

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Therefore after a period of ten years of planning and building ideas, a giant extraordinary machine has been designed and built which is familiar as Karlsruhe Tritium Neutrino Experiment or KATRIN situated in the South-West of Germany for an extensive study of the behavior of neutrinos and electrons which are emitted by a hydrogen isotope, tritium. The machine consists of a huge and perfect vacuum chamber with the provision that the inside air pressure is lower than that on moon’s surface. The experiment is designed in a way that it becomes possible to study the variations in their trajectories when they fly through the machine’s vacuum chamber. We hope that these variations can shade some light on the precision limit of some physical properties associated with neutrino mass. Apart from creating a perfect vacuum, one also has to keep eye on the temperature of the tritium which acts as the source of the neutrino in the entire experiment. Then the whole building where the apparatus has been placed is demagnetized. The decay of a tritium nucleus is carried out by the emission of a He-3 nucleus, an electron, and a neutrino. However we cannot measure the neutrino mass directly, we can determine it by looking at the energy distribution of the electrons emitted in the decay process. Inside the vacuum chamber, electrons are allowed to flow very closely by applying a powerful magnetic field in the same direction towards a powerful electric field.

The energy spectrum of the electrons emitted in tritium beta decay. Three graphs for different neutrino masses are shown. These graphs differ only in the range near the high-energetic end-point; the intersection with the abscissa depends on the neutrino mass. In the KATRIN experiment, the spectrum around this end-point is measured with high precision to obtain the neutrino mass. (Credit: Zykure | Wikipedia)

The gigantic apparatus consists of a rear section which is responsible for monitoring and calibrating pieces of equipment. The neutrino source of the experiment, i.e., the tritium source is positioned in a device called a windowless gaseous tritium source. Superconducting magnets are used to generate such a powerful magnetic field (70,000 times more powerful than Earth’s one). Among the spread out electrons inside the huge vacuum chamber, only those with the highest energy are allowed to reach the electric force set-up. Then by counting the number of electrons that reach the detector, scientists can measure the endpoint of their spectrum and hence determine the neutrino mass.

Probably after some years, the particle physics community can draw a realistic figure of these queries.

Source: The Guardian, Katrin

KATRIN - A Curiosity about the tiny Ghost Particle of the Universe The sub-atomic world is flooded with a number of fundamental particles. They are categorized into various families or classes depending on some properties like spin, mass etc. possessed by them. Among them, Neutrino is the one with extremely small mass. The existence of Neutrino mass was first established by Wolfgang Pauli in 1930 using the Beta decay of nuclear reaction to explain the conservation of energy and momentum. The sub-atomic world is flooded with a number of fundamental particles. They are categorized into various families or classes depending on some properties like spin, mass etc.

[tspeciale]

US Nuclear Corp. - First Shipment of Tritium Monitors for U.S. Air Force

http://dlvr.it/PvwzYz

[nuclearfriendsfoundation-blog]

It’s not just the name of Superman’s home planet. Actually, the element Krypton has discovered on Earth 118 years ago today and is one of the rarest gases present in the atmosphere. In 1898 two chemists, William Ramsay and his assistant Morris Travers, observed an unusual greenish-yellow light in a spectrometer when analyzing one of their samples. The glow turned out to be from Krypton residue left behind after liquefied air was boiled away. This noble gas still has a number of applications in nuclear science today. Krypton plays a crucial role in the krypton fluoride laser, an important device in the nuclear fusion energy research community. It can be used to generate intense pulses of ultraviolet light to initiate nuclear fusion reactions by targeting a pellet containing a mixture of deuterium and tritium. The isotope krypton-83 also has applications in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to assess certain lung diseases, for example. Since the gas is also a byproduct of using nuclear reactors, it’s proportion in the atmosphere can be analyzed to monitor nuclear activities around the world.

Reach us @ www.nuclearfriendsfoundation.com

[overhoff-credentials]

Stationary Tritium in Air Monitors

📷

Features:

NEMA-12 enclosure

Plate-out proof wire-grid electrodes eliminate “background” zero drift

Gamma compensation (2L or 4L)

Range: 1 to 19,999 µCi/m3, 0.1 to 1,999.9 µCi/m3, 0.01 to 199.99 MBq/m3

±5% accuracy over the entire measurement range

Audible and visual alarm indicators for signal level, low flow, and malfunction

Alpha pulse suppression, radon rejection

Long-term zero stable, span calibration is permanently stable due to special electrometer design

Options:

HTO only measurement, noble gas compensation

Upgraded heavy-duty pump system

Mounted on wheeled stainless-steel cart for portability

Description:

The Model 357BW is a single-range ionization chamber tritium in air monitor contained in a NEMA-12 enclosure suitable for permanent installation and continuous duty.  It is designed for the monitoring of rooms, glove boxes, fume hoods, exhaust stacks, as well as process piping.  The enclosure has a hinged door with a tempered glass window and is also double-hinged so that the inside components can be easily serviced.  The Model 357BW has an upgraded alarm system, including: high-level alarm (latching or non-latching), malfunction alarm (internal DC power supply or electrometer failure), and low flow alarm.  Exceptionally stable with accuracy and reproducibility of ±5% over the entire measurement range.

Dual 2L or quad 2L ionization chambers are available, with optional plate-out proof wire-grid electrodes to reduce tritium or other radioactive gas contamination by up to 1000x.  Quad 2L ion chamber assembly arranged in a cruciform geometry provides the best sensitivity, stability, and omnidirectional gamma compensation.

Technical Specifications

RANGETypical Measurement Ranges: a) 1 to 19,999 μCi/m3, MDA is 1 μCi/m3 b) 0.01 to 199.99 MBq/m3, MDA is 0.03 MBq/m3 c) 0.1 to 1,999.9 MBq/m3 or DAC where 1 DAC=10μCi/m3 d) 1 to 19,999 μSv/h, MDA is 1 μSv/h Extra-sensitive option with quad 2L chambers: e) 0.1 to 1,999.9 μCi/m3 , MDA is 0.5 μCi/m3DISPLAYDigital Meter, 4 ½” digit LEDACCURACY±5 % of reading, ±1 μCi/m3, whichever is greaterREPRODUCABILITY±5 % across the entire measurement rangeSTABILITY AND DRIFT, LONG TERM±1 μCi/m3, over the entire temperature rangeTEMPERATURE COEFFICIENTless than ±0.3%/°C, total accumulated error ≤±10% relative to 20 °C readingNOISE±1 μCi/m3, 2 sigma, with 20 second time constantGAMMA COMPENSATIONsecond ion chamber of equal volume, mounted coaxially for dual chambers, or in a cruciform arrangement for quad, serves to cancel effects of external gamma fieldsRESPONSE RATEtwo linear time constants 20 seconds for measurements below 80 μCi/m3 3 seconds for measurements above 80 μCi/m3ALARM SYSTEM-single level alarm, with adjustable set point -mode switch: latching or non-latching operation with a momentary reset position -low flow alarm: differential pressure switch, activates audible and visual alarm -system failure alarm: high or low voltage out of tolerance and electrometer failure -acknowledge push button, silences the audible indicator for all above alarmsINDICATORSacoustic signaler, red LEDIONIZATION CHAMBER VOLUMEdual 2L (measuring: 1,800cm3, total wetted: 4,000cm3), or quad 2L (measuring: 3,600cm3, total wetted: 8,000cm3)FLOWMETER0-10 LPM adjustable rotameterDUST FILTER AND PUMPhigh efficiency 99.99% at 0.1 microns HEPA respirator type cartridge long-life oscillating piston positive displacement pumpENVIRONMENTALstorage: -40° C to +65° C, operating: 0° C to +55° C, 0 to 95 % R.H. non-condensing ventilation or air conditioning not requiredPOWER120 VAC or 240VAC, 50/60 HzDIMENSIONS24.0” [610mm] Wide x 19.0” [483mm] Long x 24.0” [610mm] High wall-mount NEMA-12 rated enclosureFUSE1 A slow blow fuseWEIGHT160 lbs. [73 kg]

https://overhoff.com/product/model-357bw/

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Radiation Monitoring Software

Stores all instrument data to a database (Microsoft Access) at user-definable intervals

Displays all instrument data in table and graphical form (summary and real-time)

Limit checks incoming data of all types; each instrument can have its own set of limits of desire

Displays over limit or alarm status to security personnel at a terminal and sends email/phone alerts

Generates reports on stored data: shift reports, or daily, weekly, and monthly reports can all be generated automatically and in hardcopy.  Graphs can also be included

Identifies upward or downward trends in data

Identifies non-transmitting instruments

Tracks maintenance due on instruments and tracks locations of all instruments within your facility

Displays video/images from webcams

Overhoff Overview is a customizable software package for networking multiple Overhoff instruments together or modeling a facility graphically in a series of views.

https://overhoff.com/