Nuclear Security Helicopter Performs Radiation Survey Over University of Florida

May 9th, 2018

Awake Goy

Noisy NNSA Helicopter Measures Radioactivity Over University of Florida, May 7-9, 2018

National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) claims they notify the public when these operations take place, however I can’t find the notice or the story published in local media.

The NNSA Helicopter can be seen and heard as far north as NW 16th Ave and US 441 near Gainesville High School.

One of NNSA’s prime missions is to maintain the nations Nuclear stockpile

PRESS RELEASE, WASHINGTON – (May 4, 2018): The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA) will conduct low-altitude helicopter flights over the University of Florida campus and Gainesville area between May 7 and 9.

The public may see a twin-engine Bell 412 helicopter, which is operated by the Remote Sensing Laboratory Aerial Measuring System from Joint Base Andrews and is equipped with radiation sensing technology.

The helicopter will fly in a grid pattern over the area at 150 feet or higher above the ground surface at a speed of approximately 80 miles per hour. Flyovers will occur only during daylight hours.

The flyovers are part of a research project measuring baseline levels of radiation in the environment. NNSA routinely notifies the public of upcoming flights so that citizens who see the low-flying aircraft are not alarmed.

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NNSA’s aerial radiation testing could provide a baseline for future DARPA developed monitoring equipment to be installed in fire rescue and emergency vehicles in Gainesville and Alachua Counties with a focus on safety to large football crowds at the “Swamp” in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

DARPA NEWS:

“DARPA’s SIGMA program—whose goal is to prevent attacks involving radiological “dirty bombs” and other nuclear threats—concluded its biggest and longest test deployment of vehicle-mounted radiation detectors in Washington, D.C., in February. For approximately seven months starting in July 2016, the fleet of D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services ambulances was outfitted with DARPA-developed nuclear and radiological detectors, providing the first city-scale, dynamic, real-time map of background radiation levels throughout the Capital as well as identifying any unusual spikes that could indicate a threat.

Because medical and fire emergencies occur in every corner of the District every day, emergency vehicles equipped with radiation detectors provide an excellent means of achieving a large-scale scan for radiological risks.” (more)

Jan 9, 2018: NNSA’s core missions include maintaining the nuclear stockpile, monitoring and promoting nonproliferation, powering the nuclear Navy, and responding to nuclear and radiological emergencies.