{"id":432641,"date":"2026-03-20T14:03:22","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T13:03:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=432641"},"modified":"2026-03-20T14:03:24","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T13:03:24","slug":"the-word-nuclear-in-iran-what-is-the-issue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=432641","title":{"rendered":"The word \u201cnuclear\u201d in Iran, what is the issue?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

From CFACT<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Kelvin Kemm<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

All the drama currently unfolding in Iran is reaching a crossroads, or maybe a fork in the road, or, more likely, a spaghetti junction on the freeway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There certainly is turmoil and a tangle of events unfolding, with many Middle Eastern countries now getting involved, intentionally or unintentionally. Of course, with the effectiveness of modern communications platforms, there\u2019s a torrent of news, but sadly, certain people are becoming more and more skilled at presenting fake news. So one has to carefully examine the news items to see if they are intentionally misleading, placed by some government or formal organization, or possibly placed by some person having fun operating from a basement at home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anyway, all in all, what has repeatedly emerged from the Iran drama is the word \u201cnuclear.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So the U.S. used big bunker-busting bombs to disrupt nuclear \u201cthings.\u201d So one has to ask, \u201cWhy did they do this? What \u201cthings,\u201d and what for? What is the nuclear fuss?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another term linked to nuclear in Iran has been \u201cenriched.\u201d So what is this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, let me explain. Way back, a century ago, physicists started to realize that scientific theory said that there was, in principle, a huge amount of energy locked up inside the nucleus of an atom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The calculations said that if you break a nucleus in half, so to speak, then the energy would come out. But atoms are very small, so the energy would be very little. However, if you can get millions of atoms to do this in rapid succession, that would add up to a huge amount. Imagine a dramatic break at the start of a game of snooker, in which the white ball causes balls to fly off all over the table. Physicists call that a chain reaction when it happens to atoms. One atom splitting, when it is given a good chop, is called fission. The atom which is easiest to fission is uranium because it is the largest naturally occurring atom and is on the verge of splitting anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During World War II, under the Manhattan Project, the first atomic bombs, as they were called then, were developed. The term \u201catomic\u201d is actually wrong. Instead, today we use the correct term and refer to nuclear weapons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They used uranium. That is a big snag.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are two different isotopes of uranium. An isotope is a nucleus which is slightly different to its sibling by having one, two, or three neutrons extra. Two different isotopes behave exactly the same as each other chemically. So you can\u2019t separate them chemically, like separating a mixture of sugar and salt by dissolving them differently. The only difference with isotopes is the weight of a couple of neutrons \u2014 in other words, incredibly small.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The snag is that uranium comes in two isotopes. There is U-235, and the other is U-238. When you dig uranium out of the ground, it comes out as 99.3% U-238 and only 0.7% of U-235. But it is the U-235 which will go bang in a nuclear weapon. So natural uranium will not work in a nuclear weapon. Ideally, you need pure U-235 to make a good bang.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So scientists have to take the natural uranium and remove U-238 atoms, one by one, and put them aside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That process is called enrichment. It is incredibly difficult to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Actually, fabricating a nuclear weapon is not too difficult. The really difficult process is producing the enriched uranium. For a weapon, you need to enrich to 90%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After scientists saw the big nuclear explosions during WW II, they said something like; \u2018Gee whizz, look at that blast, I wonder if we can do that slowly, and extract the energy gently?\u2019 The answer was yes. That is called a nuclear reactor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You don\u2019t want a bang in a reactor. It turned out that you only need an enrichment of about 5% for a conventional nuclear reactor. For a modern Small Modular Reactor, you need about 10% enrichment, or maybe 15%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a result, some years ago, international nuclear authorities got together and decided that an enrichment level below 20% is considered commercial, but above 20% is going towards the military. No country needs to go above 20% if it has peaceful nuclear intentions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the last few years, it was determined that Iran had enriched quite a significant quantity of uranium up to about 60%. People asked why. When no acceptable answer was provided, it was worrying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So the U.S. decided to destroy the 60% enriched material, or at least to bury it under tons of rubble.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So that is why the word \u201cnuclear\u201d has been a significant feature in the Middle Eastern drama.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

_____________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Kelvin Kemm<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr Kelvin Kemm is a South African nuclear physicist and has been a CFACT Senior Advisor for over two decades. He is Chairman of Stratek Holdings, a nuclear project management company, and is past Chairman of the South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa).He has given both Congressional and Senate briefings in Washington DC. He has been guest speaker at over 20 US universities, and most recently gave a guest presentation in New York City. He has presented evidence to the Legislature of the State of Maine concerning nuclear power.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

All the drama currently unfolding in Iran is reaching a crossroads, or maybe a fork in the road, or, more likely, a spaghetti junction on the freeway.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":432642,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691841946,691841941,691841942,691839810,691841943,691841944,691841945,691819818],"class_list":{"0":"post-432641","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-uncategorized","8":"tag-atomic","9":"tag-nuclear-2","10":"tag-bunker-busting-bombs","11":"tag-iran","12":"tag-manhattan-project","13":"tag-u-235","14":"tag-u-238","15":"tag-uranium","17":"fallback-thumbnail"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0Iran-demonstrators-down-with-usa.jpg?fit=1280%2C853&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1Oy5","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":414594,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=414594","url_meta":{"origin":432641,"position":0},"title":"Iran Demands Climate Cash to Reduce CO2 Emissions","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"11\/25\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Iran is currently facing ecological catastrophe caused by drought and misallocation of public resources. But apparently climate cash will fix the problem.","rel":"","context":"In \"Climate action\"","block_context":{"text":"Climate action","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=climate-action"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQPsw8M99cyNW_4OKh42QkQcsyzpOoevBAhs2sLC0JymEZZi0Y-bAeA-9UpkLothAMv-wgErcDoozqybpBiesNB7DFaC1TTD-eCuFNq3HLSBcCuYFPT3UsCiGguSqGs4-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C627&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQPsw8M99cyNW_4OKh42QkQcsyzpOoevBAhs2sLC0JymEZZi0Y-bAeA-9UpkLothAMv-wgErcDoozqybpBiesNB7DFaC1TTD-eCuFNq3HLSBcCuYFPT3UsCiGguSqGs4-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C627&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQPsw8M99cyNW_4OKh42QkQcsyzpOoevBAhs2sLC0JymEZZi0Y-bAeA-9UpkLothAMv-wgErcDoozqybpBiesNB7DFaC1TTD-eCuFNq3HLSBcCuYFPT3UsCiGguSqGs4-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C627&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQPsw8M99cyNW_4OKh42QkQcsyzpOoevBAhs2sLC0JymEZZi0Y-bAeA-9UpkLothAMv-wgErcDoozqybpBiesNB7DFaC1TTD-eCuFNq3HLSBcCuYFPT3UsCiGguSqGs4-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C627&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQPsw8M99cyNW_4OKh42QkQcsyzpOoevBAhs2sLC0JymEZZi0Y-bAeA-9UpkLothAMv-wgErcDoozqybpBiesNB7DFaC1TTD-eCuFNq3HLSBcCuYFPT3UsCiGguSqGs4-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C627&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":442404,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=442404","url_meta":{"origin":432641,"position":1},"title":"Fertilizer Crisis Looms as Iran War Chokes Global Urea Supplies, Threatening Billions of Meals","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"05\/03\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The Iran war's disruption of fertilizer (especially urea) and energy supplies has begun pushing global food prices higher, though the full effects are still unfolding and remain lagged.","rel":"","context":"In \"Haber-Bosch process\"","block_context":{"text":"Haber-Bosch process","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=haber-bosch-process"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/0-Fertilizer-Crisis-Looms-as-Iran-War-Chokes-Global-Urea-Supplies-Threatening-Billions-of-Meals.jpg?fit=1168%2C784&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/0-Fertilizer-Crisis-Looms-as-Iran-War-Chokes-Global-Urea-Supplies-Threatening-Billions-of-Meals.jpg?fit=1168%2C784&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/0-Fertilizer-Crisis-Looms-as-Iran-War-Chokes-Global-Urea-Supplies-Threatening-Billions-of-Meals.jpg?fit=1168%2C784&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/0-Fertilizer-Crisis-Looms-as-Iran-War-Chokes-Global-Urea-Supplies-Threatening-Billions-of-Meals.jpg?fit=1168%2C784&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/0-Fertilizer-Crisis-Looms-as-Iran-War-Chokes-Global-Urea-Supplies-Threatening-Billions-of-Meals.jpg?fit=1168%2C784&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":439632,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=439632","url_meta":{"origin":432641,"position":2},"title":"Chinese-Owned Sanctioned Tanker Tests Trump\u2019s Hormuz Blockade","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"04\/15\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"A U.S.-sanctioned Chinese-owned tanker, the Rich Starry, successfully transited the Strait of Hormuz on April 14, 2026\u2014exiting the Persian Gulf into the Gulf of Oman\u2014before making a U-turn and heading back toward the strait on April 15, testing the early hours of President Trump\u2019s naval blockade of Iranian ports.","rel":"","context":"In \"China\"","block_context":{"text":"China","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=china"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0-Chinese-Owned-Sanctioned-Tanker-Tests-Trumps-Hormuz-Blockade.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0-Chinese-Owned-Sanctioned-Tanker-Tests-Trumps-Hormuz-Blockade.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0-Chinese-Owned-Sanctioned-Tanker-Tests-Trumps-Hormuz-Blockade.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0-Chinese-Owned-Sanctioned-Tanker-Tests-Trumps-Hormuz-Blockade.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":434907,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=434907","url_meta":{"origin":432641,"position":3},"title":"China Caps Fuel Price Hike Amid Global Oil Surge, Sparking Panic Buying and Long Lines","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"03\/28\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"China's fuel pricing mechanism for gasoline and diesel is a hybrid system managed by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the country's top economic planner. It links domestic retail prices to international crude oil markets while incorporating domestic costs and allowing government intervention for stability. The current framework was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"China\"","block_context":{"text":"China","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=china"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0-China-Caps-Fuel-Price-Hike-Amid-Global-Oil-Surge-Sparking-Panic-Buying-and-Long-Lines.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0-China-Caps-Fuel-Price-Hike-Amid-Global-Oil-Surge-Sparking-Panic-Buying-and-Long-Lines.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0-China-Caps-Fuel-Price-Hike-Amid-Global-Oil-Surge-Sparking-Panic-Buying-and-Long-Lines.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0-China-Caps-Fuel-Price-Hike-Amid-Global-Oil-Surge-Sparking-Panic-Buying-and-Long-Lines.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":433641,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=433641","url_meta":{"origin":432641,"position":4},"title":"Climate Alarmists Indifferent to Geopolitical Realities and Human Suffering\u00a0","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"03\/23\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"As war rages in the Middle East and Ukraine, as missiles and drones claim new victims every day, and as the global order is threatened\u2014with all the attendant consequences of human misery\u2014a strange persistence haunts the comfy living rooms of certain remote corners of the West, tucked away warmly and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"\u201ccarbon footprint\u201d\"","block_context":{"text":"\u201ccarbon footprint\u201d","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=carbon-footprint-2"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0-Climate-Alarmists-Indifferent-to-Geopolitical-Realities-and-Human-Suffering.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0-Climate-Alarmists-Indifferent-to-Geopolitical-Realities-and-Human-Suffering.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0-Climate-Alarmists-Indifferent-to-Geopolitical-Realities-and-Human-Suffering.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0-Climate-Alarmists-Indifferent-to-Geopolitical-Realities-and-Human-Suffering.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":430283,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=430283","url_meta":{"origin":432641,"position":5},"title":"Iran Nearly Crippled Global Energy, But Trump Found A New Weapon","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"03\/09\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"As energy markets reel from the U.S.\u2019 war with Iran, the Trump administration is racing against time to insulate Americans from any more pain at the pump.","rel":"","context":"In \"crude oil\"","block_context":{"text":"crude oil","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=crude-oil"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0-Iran-Nearly-Crippled-Global-Energy-But-Trump-Found-A-New-Weapon.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0-Iran-Nearly-Crippled-Global-Energy-But-Trump-Found-A-New-Weapon.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0-Iran-Nearly-Crippled-Global-Energy-But-Trump-Found-A-New-Weapon.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/0-Iran-Nearly-Crippled-Global-Energy-But-Trump-Found-A-New-Weapon.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/432641","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121246920"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=432641"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/432641\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":432647,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/432641\/revisions\/432647"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/432642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=432641"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=432641"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=432641"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}