The infrasound signals from North Korea’s 4 July 2006 missile launch. Infrasound has become an accepted CTBT monitoring technique in recent years with 60 infrasound stations world-wide as part of the CTBTO network. They also, however, detect a bunch of other atmospheric phenomena, as Bharath Gopalaswamy has illustrated. I am particularly interested in using these …
CTBT Scope Note
by | 2009-07-27 | 12 Comments
I’ve been meaning to write something about the scope of the CTBT — this ongoing debate about whether the Russians believe so-called hydronuclear tests are permitted under the treaty I don’t find compelling the evidence that Russia has a different definition, let alone that they are conducting tests that over time will alter the military …
Publishing the Unpublishable
by | 2009-07-26 | 9 Comments
There was some heartburn in the comments about the heat-to-light ratio in Jeff’s post on the Washington Post and the Joint Threat Assessment on Iran. So let’s see if we can’t address the same topic from a slightly different angle. Getting dismissive reactions from senior government officials is nothing new for outside experts who have …
An Introduction to Non-introduction
by | 2009-07-24 | 20 Comments
Israel’s nuclear posture is unique. Some countries with “advanced nuclear capabilities,” such as India and China, have publicly adopted “No First Use” postures. Israel has adopted a declaratory policy that it will not be the first to “introduce” nuclear weapons into the Middle East. This posture has been met with widespread and willing suspension of …
