Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, June 29, 2023
Posted: 29th June 2023
June 29, 2023
Members of the Wagner Group look from a military vehicle in Rostov-on-Don late on Saturday. (Photo by Roman Romokhov/AFP via Getty Images)
NUCLEAR RISK
What would happen if a military group took over Russia’s nuclear arsenal?
The Wagner Group’s recent march on Moscow revived an old fear among US officials concerned that nuclear weapons in Russia might fall into the wrong hands. Associate editor François Diaz-Maurin shares experts’ thoughts on what might unfold if such a thing happened. Read more.
NUCLEAR RISK
How the US and NATO can deal with Russian nuclear coercion in Ukraine
While the US and its allies must manage the risks of nuclear escalation carefully, defeating Putin, restoring Ukrainian sovereignty, and reinforcing the rules-based order must be our priorities, a former US ambassador to Russia argues. Read more.
NUCLEAR RISK
Wargame shows attacks on reactors would cause meltdowns and military paralysis
The simulation revealed how the uncertainties and dangers of military attacks against nuclear power plants can paralyze decision-making and fundamentally alter the course of wars, writes nuclear policy expert Henry Sokolski. Read more.
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We’ve added the cover of the 1991 Bulletin issue, “The Minute Hand Moves, Farther Than Ever Before” to our store! Until tomorrow, get this T-shirt—and other T-shirts focused on nuclear risk, climate change, and disruptive technologies—for only $14 each.
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DOOMSDAY CLOCK
1991: The farthest the Doomsday Clock ever moved backward
This was the lead story in the December 1991 issue of the Bulletin magazine that focused on the Clock moving back from 10 to 17 minutes to midnight. The time change was cited because the Bulletin felt the world had entered a new era with developments in relations between the East and West. Read more.
DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGIES
Labs studying the world’s deadliest diseases are on the rise
The number of maximum containment labs has grown significantly since the early 2000s and more labs are being planned in the wake of COVID. But, as the number of labs increases, so do the risks and benefits of the research conducted in them. Watch now.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“So much of journalism is trivial and I—on the other hand—and the editors that work for me get to spend our time editing and writing stories that are actually consequential. The most consequential stories there are.”
— Bulletin editor-in-chief John Mecklin, “Setting the Doomsday Clock with John Mecklin,” Journos
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