ALTHOUGH surveillance has increased around the world following March 22nd’s bombings in Brussels, it remains extremely difficult to detect explosives carried into railway stations, shopping malls and other public places. The bombs used in Belgium might well have been picked up after the check-in desks at Zaventem Airport, but the suicide-attackers probably never intended to reach the security gate. The intensive screening carried out inside airports is not practical in many other places. That could change as new techniques are developed.
The bombs in Brussels were composed of triacetone triperoxide, known as TATP. This is the same explosive used to kill 52 people in London in train and bus attacks in 2005. It is extremely unstable, but for terrorists bent on sacrificing themselves TATP has considerable appeal since it can be made from compounds found in easily obtained materials such as paint thinners and hair-bleaching agents.
TATP can be detected with traditional technologies, like ion mobility spectrometry. This uses a desktop machine to analyse swabs. As the process can pick up minute traces of substances associated with...Continue reading
http://ift.tt/23l4hxG
3Novices
No comments:
Post a Comment