From: utzoo!henry
Newsgroups: net.misc
Title: Re: Cosmos A-bomb? 
Article-I.D.: utzoo.2739
Posted: Sun Jan  9 23:05:37 1983
Received: Sun Jan  9 23:05:37 1983

The fission fuel aboard space reactors is usually, I think, highly
enriched to minimize the size and weight of the reactor.  I don't
think those reactors operate for sufficiently long periods to generate
useful amounts of plutonium, but the original fuel might be rich enough
to qualify as "bomb grade".  But as Jerry Leichter points out, it's
likely to come down in lots of small, well-scattered pieces.  Moreover, 
since said pieces come from a reactor that has been operating for a
while, they will be *highly* radioactive and very dangerous to handle.
This does not seem like a very practical source of materials for bombs.