Determination of short-lived radionuclides in fresh fall-out debris for identification of nuclear weapon tests.

Radiochemical procedures for the assay of short-lived fission and activation products are described. They are rapid and quantitative and the radionuclides separated are radiochemically pure. Ratios of some of the short-lived radionuclides obtained by these measurements for selected Chinese and French nuclear tests are given and provide information about the fissile material used in the tests.