A Comparison of Hazard Predication and Assessment Capability (HPAC) Software Dose-Rate Contour Plots to a Sample of Local Fallout Data from Test Detonations in the Continental United States, 1945-1962

A comparison of Hazard Prediction and Assessment Capability (HPAC) software dose-rate contour plots to a sample of local nuclear fallout data from test detonations in the continental United States, 1945 - 1962, is performed. Fallout data from test detonations is obtained from Compilation of Local Fallout Data from Test Detonations 1945- 1962 Extracted from DASA 1251, Volume I - Continental U.S. Tests. This report contains fallout plots and radiation contours for each test in the atmospheric nuclear test program conducted by the United States prior to 1963. These plots are compared with the plots resulting from Defense Threat Reduction Agency\u27s (DTRA) HPAC software using test day wind data and additional wind data for up to seven days following each test. The results from HPAC were extrapolated to H+1 hour using the t-1.2 decay approximation. A visual comparison of the plots revealed mismatches between observed and predicted data. A numerical comparison using Warner, et al, Rowland and Thompson, dose-rate contour area comparisons and grounded unit time reference dose rate corroborated the results of the visual comparisons

A Comparison in the Accuracy of Mapping Nuclear Fallout Patterns using HPAC, HYSPLIT, DELFIC FPT and an AFIT FORTRAN95 Fallout Deposition Code

Four nuclear fallout mapping tools are studied to determine which tool predicts the most accurate fallout dose-rate contours with low computation time and resources. The four programs consist of the FORTRAN95 based Fallout Deposition Code (FDC), the Hazard Prediction and Assessment Capability\u27s (HPAC) Nuclear Weapon (NWPN), the Defense Land Fallout Interpretative Code (DELFIC) Fallout Planning Tool (FPT) and the Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) Model. The models were compared to the Defense Nuclear Agency\u27s (DNA) DNA 1251-1-EX, Compilation of Local Fallout Data from Test Detonations 1945-1962 Extracted from DASA 1251, using Warner and Platt\u27s Measure of Effectiveness (MOE) method. In order to accurately compare models the use of the FDC and low resolution weather data was validated. HYSPLIT trials were studied varying the vertical distribution, horizontal distribution, emission rate, emission time and number of equal activity particle groups. HPAC trials were run varying the use of terrain and the terrain resolution and the DELFIC FPT trials were ran varying the length of time the ground zero winds were incorporated. The best results of each of the four nuclear mapping tools were compared with the results culminating in the determination that the DELFIC FPT is the preferred nuclear mapping tool

Air Force Institute of Technology Research Report 2005

This report summarizes the research activities of the Air Force Institute of Technology’s Graduate School of Engineering and Management. It describes research interests and faculty expertise; lists student theses/dissertations; identifies research sponsors and contributions; and outlines the procedures for contacting the school. Included in the report are: faculty publications, conference presentations, consultations, and funded research projects. Research was conducted in the areas of Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Electro-Optics, Computer Engineering and Computer Science, Systems and Engineering Management, Operational Sciences, and Engineering Physics

Air Force Institute of Technology Research Report 2003

This report summarizes the research activities of the Air Force Institute of Technology’s Graduate School of Engineering and Management. It describes research interests and faculty expertise; lists student theses/dissertations; identifies research sponsors and contributions; and outlines the procedures for contacting the school. Included in the report are: faculty publications, conference presentations, consultations, and funded research projects. Research was conducted in the areas of Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Electro-Optics, Computer Engineering and Computer Science, Systems and Engineering Management, Operational Sciences, and Engineering Physics

Air Force Institute of Technology Research Report 2006

This report summarizes the research activities of the Air Force Institute of Technology’s Graduate School of Engineering and Management. It describes research interests and faculty expertise; lists student theses/dissertations; identifies research sponsors and contributions; and outlines the procedures for contacting the school. Included in the report are: faculty publications, conference presentations, consultations, and funded research projects. Research was conducted in the areas of Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Electro-Optics, Computer Engineering and Computer Science, Systems and Engineering Management, Operational Sciences, Mathematics, Statistics and Engineering Physics

Radioactive Governance: The Politics of Expertise after Fukushima

This dissertation focuses on Japanese public and state responses to the release of radioactive contamination after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. I argue that the Fukushima nuclear disaster has led to the emergence of new forms of expertise in governing radioactive risks. These include techniques of governance that attempt to normalize peoples relationships with nuclear matter as an everyday concern. They also include decentralized strategies that empower victims of the disaster by providing access to technoscientifc practices of radiation monitoring and delegating radiation protection from the state to the citizens. My findings uncover a major shift in how societies have formerly organized responses to radioactive risks. In the aftermath of nuclear accidents, scholars have criticized central authoritarian decisions, in which state management of radioactive hazards was associated with politics of secrecy, victimhood, or public knowledge deficit. At stake in Fukushima is an increased normalization of citizens relationship with residual radioactivity, which is transformed into an everyday concern, rather than being represented as something exceptional. This is not only done by state experts, but equally via the increased activity of citizen scientists that collectively monitor residual radioactivity. My research is a significant departure from traditional sociocultural works that predominantly focus on micro-scale studies, such as how prior sociocultural factors influence a group understanding of radioactive risks. By highlighting major shifts in the structure of expertise and the regulation of life amidst toxic exposure, my research highlights how the management of contamination risks is evolving in an era where the impacts of modernization represent permanent marks on the planet

Motivos teóricos para el impasse en la regulación de armas contraespaciales

Esta tesis aplica la teoría fundamental de las relaciones internacionales para explicar las funciones de conformación de las posiciones modernas de política espacial. Estas posiciones de política exterior, a su vez, están directamente relacionadas con el status quo en la legislación internacional que regula el empleo de armas contraespaciales.#Weapons#WeaponsRegulationsTaking into account the profound global utility of near-earth space, and the increasing threat posed to it by orbital debris, this thesis attempts to explain why a seemingly well-established system of international governance has failed to deter the testing, and genuine considerations for operational employment, of counterspace (CS) weapons. In doing so, it seeks to identify motives based in fundamental international relations (IR) theory. While recognizing the criticality of a U.S. commitment to any effective CS weapons regulation, it is hypothesized that the nation’s well-established opposition to such legislation can be explained using constructivist principles. Structure is added through the application of specific research objectives (SROs). These include describing the physical and operational complexities of the space environment, the nature of CS weapons and their employment considerations, and the orbital debris problem (SRO 1), conducting an analysis of applicable IR forums, existing international space law, and pertinent historical events as they pertain to shaping modern foreign policy positions (SRO 2), and formulating realistic proposals for advancing the conduct of responsible behavior in space by curtailing the employment of CS weapons (SRO 3). While the pursuit of SRO 1 provides context, SRO 2 directly addresses the research question. A review of regulatory instruments confirms their inadequacy in providing enforceable guidelines. However, it also establishes that normative standards of behavior have been explicitly defined. A subsequent analysis of recent events indicates a blatant disregard for these standards by Russia and China, validating modern U.S. policy and strategy positions. From a constructivist point of view, this partially validates the research hypothesis. Aspects of realist theory, specifically Power Transition Theory, are also necessary to account for the actions of Russia and China as strategic competitors. Finally, in addressing SRO 3 the thesis provides a starting point for subsequent research and debate