@@ Why the UN is silent? U.S. & Britain conducted the 22nd underground nuclear explosion, in full violation of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) @@

[Arash]

U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration
February 23, 2006

Krakatau Subcritical Nuclear Experiment Conducted

Nevada Nuclear Test Site -- Krakatau, a joint United States/United Kingdom
Subcritical Nuclear Experiment (explosion), was successfully Conducted at 12:00 PM on
February 23, 2006, at the Nevada Nuclear Test Site. The experiment was conducted in
the U1a complex.

The Atomic Weapons Establishment of the United Kingdom (http://www.awe.co.uk) and Los
Alamos National Laboratory (http://www.lanl.gov) conducted the experiment to gather
scientific data that provides crucial information to maintain the safety and
reliability of each nation's nuclear weapons without having to conduct underground
nuclear tests.

Krakatau was the 22nd subcritical nuclear experiment (explosion) to date. The
previous subcritical nuclear experiment, Armando, was conducted on May 25, 2004.

The last joint US/UK subcritical nuclear experiment was Vito, conducted on February
14, 2002. Krakatau was a follow-on to the Vito experiment.

Subcritical nuclear experiments examine the behavior of plutonium
(http://periodic.lanl.gov/elements/94.html) as it is strongly shocked by forces
produced by chemical high explosives. Subcritical nuclear experiments produce
essential scientific data and technical information used to help maintain the safety
and reliability of the nuclear weapons stockpile.

The nuclear experiments (explosion) are subcritical; that is no critical mass is
formed and no self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction can occur; thus, there is no
nuclear explosion [Makes little difference, there is actually a nuclear explosion,
and it is in violation of CTBT].

The Nevada Nuclear Test Site's U1a Complex is located 85 miles (137 kilometers)
northwest of Las Vegas (http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Las+Vegas,+NV). The U1a Complex
is designed to contain these experiments in a safe and secure environment in an
underground laboratory of horizontal tunnels with small excavated experimental
alcoves mined at the base of a vertical shaft, approximately 960 feet (293 meters)
beneath the surface.

The Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT)
http://www.ctbto.org

The Text of the Treaty (CTBT)
http://www.ctbto.org/treaty/treatytext.tt.html

Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty / Test Moratorium
http://www.fas.org/nuke/control/ctbt/

Photos: Krakatau nuclear test
http://www.nv.doe.gov/library/photos/subcritical.aspx

Video: Krakatau nuclear test
http://www.nv.doe.gov/library/films/other.aspx?ID=152

Gallery of U.S. Nuclear Tests
http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Usa/Tests/

Nevada Nuclear Test Site
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/facility/nts.htm

Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (UK)
http://www.cnduk.org

U.S. nuclear forces, 2006
http://www.thebulletin.org/article_nn.php?art_ofn=jf06norris

British nuclear forces, 2005
http://www.thebulletin.org/article_nn.php?art_ofn=nd05norris

http://www.nv.doe.gov/library/newsreleases/KrakatauSuccessful_02232006.pdf