Clues In That Mysterious Radioactive Cloud Point Toward Russia
Western scientists say they may never know the source of the cloud of ruthenium-106 that hovered over Europe last month. But what little data there is suggests a research facility inside Russia.
The tiny nation of Denmark has just three stations for monitoring atmospheric radiation. Each week, scientists change out air filters in the detectors and take the used ones to a technical university near Copenhagen.
There, Sven Poul Nielsen and other researchers analyze the filters. They often snag small amounts of naturally occurring radioactivity, radon for example.
Then about a month ago, Nielsen was startled to find something far stranger: a radioactive isotope known as ruthenium-106.
Ruthenium-106 has a half-life of just one year, which means that it isn't naturally found on Earth. It is, however, created in the glowing cores
