Final answer:
Dirty bombs, or radiation dispersal devices, are traditional bombs loaded with radioactive material designed to spread radioactive contamination. They are less powerful than nuclear weapons but cause long-term environmental hazards and significant psychological impacts.
Step-by-step explanation:
Dirty bombs, also known as radiation dispersal devices (RDDs), combine conventional explosives with radioactive material. The primary intent of a dirty bomb is to spread radioactive contamination across a wide area following the explosion of the conventional bomb, thereby causing both immediate blast effects and longer-term radiation hazards to public health and the environment.
Unlike a nuclear bomb, which relies on nuclear fission to generate a massive explosion, a dirty bomb uses a conventional explosion to disperse radioactive substances.
Radioactive materials can be sourced from various locations, such as nuclear medical supplies, radioactive waste from fission plants, or low-level radioactive waste, which includes contaminated tools and clothing from nuclear facilities. The steel or concrete domes that typically cover nuclear reactors are designed to contain any accidental release of radioactive material, but the waste can potentially be repurposed into malicious devices like dirty bombs.
An RDD, therefore, can contaminate a local region, poisoning it and making it uninhabitable, impacting both human health and the environment. The nuclear fallout following such an explosion would consist of dust and radioactive particles with the potential to affect large areas depending on weather conditions and wind currents, as seen in historical nuclear events. While RDDs do not have the same destructive power as nuclear weapons or the sophistication of implosion-type fission bombs, their psychological impact and the long-term environmental contamination they can cause are significant concerns for national security and public safety.