The controversy over whether India's H-bomb was a fizzle continues to rage among international experts. But last week Indian nuclear scientists came up with more proof to show that the yields of the five nuclear blasts in Pokhran in May was the projected 58-60 kilotonnes (one kilotonne is the explosive energy equivalent of 1,000 tonnes of TNT).Earlier western scientists had pooh-poohed such claims. They had pointed out that their studies indicated the average yield could only have been 16 kt, implying that India's H-bomb was a dud.Studying seismic results from another 100 stations, scientists at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) in Trombay say these confirm their earlier surmise. After the May 11 tests they had pointed out that one reason why the seismic stations averaged much lower readings was because all three nuclear devices were detonated simultaneously. Since the shafts in which they were tested were aligned in an east-west direction the shock-waves interfered with each other. Seismic stations on this azimuth recorded much lower readings than those located in the north. The new study validates this conclusion. New FindingsReadings from 100 more seismic stations confirm Indian hypothesis that simultaneous detonations in the May 11 tests distorted results on the east-west azimuth.Comparisons with three US tests show the yields of the Indian test was 60 kt.Another major finding, published in the latest issue of the BARC newsletter, is the correlation of acceleration values of the shock-waves with those of three nuclear tests done by the US in the '60s. .preferred-source-banner{ margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}At one of them in Rio Blanco the seismic magnitude was put at 5.4, a figure similar to what Indian scientists claim for their May 11 test. The US had postulated the yield of that test to be 90 kt. Says S.K. Sikka, director of BARC's solid state physics group: "Surely our figure of 60 kt cannot be said to be an overestimation."While seismic results are important, true confirmation of a H-bomb test will come from analysis of radio-chemical evidence from the blast site. BARC scientists say that such analysis is in an advanced state and are confident of the outcome. To their credit, unlike other countries, India's nuclear scientists have been unusually open about their results. But western scientists maintain that till they publish findings of their on-site analysis, the jury on India's H-bomb is still out.Published By: AtMigration Published On: Dec 21, 1998--- ENDS ---
