• Localisation : #Nyonoksa (Нёнокса)
      https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Нёнокса
      (avec une version raccourcie en anglais)

      à noter : l’article inclut, sans aucun lien dans l’article, 2 tweets (du 5 août) qui représentent une grosse explosion d’un dépôt de munitions à Atchinsk, kraï de Krasnoïarsk, soit à quelques 3000 kilomètres de Nyonoksa, district de la municipalité de #Severodvinsk, oblast d’Arkhangelsk…

    • Security Brief: Botched Russian Weapons Test Leads to Radiation Leaks
      http://click1.crm.foreignpolicy.com/ViewMessage.do?m=pmdhymyy&r=idmygccmv&s=kstvvgqpqtvlllrrtg

      Radiation leaks after explosion. Two days after a mysterious blast at a Russian weapons testing range caused a spike in radiation levels in nearby Severodvinsk, Russia’s nuclear energy authority Rosatom confirmed Saturday that the explosion involved radioactive materials. 

      U.S. officials and experts believe the explosion, which killed seven, came after a botched test of a new nuclear-powered cruise missile that Russian President Vladimir Putin has trumpeted as central to Russia’s 21st-century nuclear deterrent, the New York Times reports.

      The possibility that this was another Russian mishap with its nuclear-powered cruise missile is looking frighteningly plausible,” said Ian Williams, the deputy director of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, in an email to Foreign Policy.

      The missile in question. Suspicion fell on the #Burevestnik, a nuclear-powered cruise missile Russia is developing, dubbed “Skyfall” by NATO. The weapon is intended to fly for hours or even days in a bid to evade missile defense systems. “The system is part of several new strategic-range nuclear delivery systems that Russia is developing. Most are having testing problems, behind schedule, or unlikely to be fielded in large numbers, if ever,” said Kingston Reif, the director for disarmament and threat reduction policy at the Arms Control Association.

    • Une description assez détaillée de ce que l’on sait de l’incident…

      No sign radiation from a missile explosion has spread beyond Russia | New Scientist
      https://www.newscientist.com/article/2213200-no-sign-radiation-from-a-missile-explosion-has-spread-beyond-r

      An explosion at a missile testing range in north-western Russia killed five people working for the state nuclear energy agency and saw radiation levels spike locally, but there is no sign the radiation has spread to Europe.

      The Rosatom scientists were thrown from a sea-based platform after fuel caught fire at the military facility near Severodvinsk on 8 August, Russian news agencies reported. In a statement, Rosatom said the work was “related to a radio isotope power source”. Observers have speculated it could have been a nuclear-powered cruise missile that Russian president Vladimir Putin spoke of last year.

      Russian authorities have confirmed the involvement of radioactive materials in the accident, but not the specific weapons system that was being tested,” says Ankit Panda at the Federation of American Scientists in Washington, D.C. “It’s important to clarify that the radiological event in this case is not due to the presence of nuclear weaponry, but what may be a prototype nuclear propulsion unit for a cruise missile.” He believes the difficulties and dangers of such a system mean it may never see deployment.

      Radiation levels in Severodvinsk, 25 miles away, jumped for nearly an hour, at levels of up to 2 microsieverts per hour, which is below levels considered dangerous. A statement on the city’s website reported a “short-term” spike on Thursday, but the statement had been removed by Friday.

    • … avec deux pics de radioactivité

      Russia news: Radiation mystery takes new twist as officials admit TWO spikes | World | News | Express.co.uk
      https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1164742/russia-news-russia-explosion-radiation-Severodvinsk-vladimir-putin-milita


      Russia news: Officials have admitted two separate radiation spikes were recorded last week
      Image: GETTY / EAST2WESTNEWS

      Pictures emerged of the five “elite” scientists - dubbed “national heroes” - who were lost due to an explosion and fire during a test of a nuclear engine for an advanced new missile to equip Vladimir Putin’s military machine. This came as Moscow admitted there were two - not one as previously disclosed - spikes in background radiation near Severodvinsk as a result of the accident. Two of the men were blown into the sea during at the top secret weapons testing zone in the White Sea.

      Their bodies were initially lost but later found and funerals for all those killed will be held today in top secret closed nuclear research town Sarov, where foreigners are banned.

      According to one version, the troubling missile accident came as the scientists were working on the nuclear engine of deadly Burevestnik cruise missile with “unlimited range”, nicknamed the ‘Flying Chernobyl’, when it exploded.

      One of the dead was Evgeny Korotaev, 50, a leading electronics engineer and also a popular DJ, whose second wife had given birth to twin girls just seven months ago.

      Like the other dead, he worked for the classified Institute of Experimental Physics based in #Sarov, 235 miles east of Moscow, known as #Arzamas-16 in Soviet times.

    • Ah tiens, un des premiers articles (du 8 août…) était illustré d’une photo qui semble bien être liée à l’événement. On notera que par la suite, tous les autres articles sont illustrés par des photos de l’explosion du dépôt de munitions de Sibérie (Atchinsk).
      L’association des mots nucléaire et explosion entrainant de façon réflexe la sélection d’une image de boule de feu ou de champignon…

      Comme indiqué (parfois…) dans les articles, il est probable qu’une explosion (sans doute) chimique ait libéré les «  isotopes radioactifs  » qui se sont disséminés et provoqué le (ou les) pic(s) de radioactivité.

      Russia explosion : Fire at nuclear submarine missile test site - two dead during test | World | News | Express.co.uk
      https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1163236/russia-explosion-Severodvinsk-nuclear-missile-submarine-military-radiatio


      Russia explosion : A fire at a military base has left at least one dead
      Image : TWITTER

      AN EXPLOSION and fire at a Russian site for testing missile for nuclear submarines has left at least two people dead and 10 injured.

      The incident at Severodvinsk, in the Arkhangelsk, was also feared to have led to a spike in radiation levels. A spokesperson for the city said: “At around 12 o’clock in Severodvinsk, a short-term excess of the radiation background was recorded.” However state-run media sources later said radiation levels were normal and no harmful substances had been released.

    • Explosion nucléaire en Russie : les médecins intervenus sur le site examinés à Moscou
      https://www.latribune.fr/entreprises-finance/industrie/aeronautique-defense/explosion-nucleaire-en-russie-les-medecins-intervenus-sur-le-site-examines

      L’explosion sur le site militaire, qui a été fatale à cinq scientifiques nucléaires russes, s’est produite jeudi dernier près de la ville de Severodvinsk. Le ministère de la Défense avait déclaré qu’aucune substance toxique n’avait été libérée dans l’atmosphère mais les services météorologiques ont observé des radiations 4 à 16 fois supérieures à la normale. L’ONG Greenpeace affirme qu’elles ont été 20 fois supérieures à la normale.

      Les médecins qui ont soigné les victimes de l’explosion survenue la semaine dernière sur une site militaire du nord de la Russie ont été envoyés à Moscou pour passer des examens, rapporte mardi l’agence de presse Tass citant une source non identifiée.

      L’agence précise qu’ils ont signé un accord de confidentialité leur interdisant de divulguer la moindre information sur cette mystérieuse explosion.

      L’explosion, qui a été fatale à cinq scientifiques nucléaires russes, s’est produite jeudi dernier près de la ville de Severodvinsk (région d’Arkhangelsk, extrême nord de la Russie). L’agence atomique russe Rosatom a déclaré que l’accident s’était produit lors d’un essai de fusée sur une plateforme en mer.

      Le ministère de la Défense avait déclaré peu après l’accident qu’aucune substance toxique n’avait été libérée dans l’atmosphère et les niveaux de radiation étaient restés stables.

      Mais les services météorologiques ont observé des radiations 4 à 16 fois supérieures à la normale, rapporte mardi l’agence Tass. L’ONG Greenpeace indique pour sa part que les radiations mesurées dans le secteur ont été 20 fois supérieures à la normale.

      Des experts américains pensent que l’accident s’est produit lors d’un tir d’essai du missile expérimental à propulsion nucléaire Bourevestnik (Skyfall dans la classification de l’Otan).

    • Et le gentil Donald de s’inquiéter pour la santé des voisins russes… Mais lui, il a un joujou encore mieux.

      https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1161026203345723393
      Donald J. Trump
      @realDonaldTrump

      The United States is learning much from the failed missile explosion in Russia. We have similar, though more advanced, technology. The Russian “Skyfall” explosion has people worried about the air around the facility, and far beyond. Not good!