Sandia Labs develops nuke-detecting camera

Aiming to plug the huge security hole that is our domestic port system, researchers at Sandia National Laboratories have developed a so-called "neutron-scatter" camera that is able to detect almost any radioactive material in its field of view -- even if it's hidden behind layers of shielding, such as in a cargo container. While traditional gamma ray-based handheld detectors are hobbled by relatively stringent proximity requirements, the Sandia cam uses an array of orthogonal sensors to pinpoint neutrons in 3D space at a "classified" distance, although its bulk and laggy result times mean that both types of devices should be used together for maximum efficiency. Currently the prototype neutron-scatter cameras are being deployed to several field locations for calibration, where their detectors will be trained to better compensate for background radiation and reduce incidences of false alarms.

[Photo courtesy of Sandia National Labs]

[Jason @ Nov 23rd 2007 1:15PM]

hide the bananas and Brazil nuts!

[Tim @ Nov 23rd 2007 1:20PM]

Whoa, so they actually DO something at Sandia?

[John @ Nov 23rd 2007 11:10PM]

So they ignored your job application, huh?

[upsilamba @ Nov 23rd 2007 1:30PM]

I love wireless with no wires.

[DarkLightConnection @ Nov 23rd 2007 1:53PM]

And i love wired with lots of shielded wires on the back... shame on you man, every one passing by your house can spy on you :-)

[fraggle @ Nov 23rd 2007 1:34PM]

So are we at a point yet where actually walking through security is more dangerous than flying on the plane?

least we won't be worry that we left the laptop tuned on int he suitcase just because it's glowing..

[MIKEman993 @ Nov 23rd 2007 1:52PM]

Woah! Can i win this too on engadget as part of the Black Friday Giveaway!?

[DarkLightConnection @ Nov 23rd 2007 1:55PM]

Yes and give me a nuke.. you know, to help MIKEman993 test his new nuke detector >:D

[Tachikomatic @ Nov 23rd 2007 1:55PM]

Or, you know, you could just look for a big red dot on or near your outpost.

[Bombaclaat @ Nov 23rd 2007 2:58PM]

is this 10 megapixels with 100000x zoom?

[Greg @ Nov 23rd 2007 3:33PM]

To the ports anyone?

[Adam @ Nov 23rd 2007 3:44PM]

Does anyone know what type of sensor(s) this uses?

[Jason H @ Nov 23rd 2007 10:25PM]

This just brings us one step closer to Battlestar Galactica. We've got radiological alarms, where's our FTL drives?

[Maxim @ Nov 24th 2007 4:26AM]

test

[Gurdeep Singh @ Nov 24th 2007 4:47AM]

cool engadget

[Wwhat @ Nov 24th 2007 8:32PM]

It's going to be scary to operate this thing, to discover in detail how much radioactivity is all around us all the time.
Good thing that at least the chinese toys are shielded :]