First off, the age of the stuff, whether U²³⁵ or Pu is irrelevant - half lifes are in the millions of years. As Another Scott pointed out above - only Tritium is of concern there: 12.3 years.

Before the near-bankruptcy, USSR's control was reliably (!?) reported to be quite better than our own. Ex: Rocky Flats, that cesspool of nearby permanent Pu contamination in Colo - had rilly sloppy accounting. Hey! Pantex et al do their stuff for Profit! Imagine a CIEIO, then reread or rewatch [link|http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/6305474842/103-8167427-4704617| Silkwood], that almost-documentary film which demonstrates capitalism's concern for workers [Kerr-McGee in that case] - especially those handling perhaps the most insidious substance known: or one of the top five if you include bio.

Unless you're stacking side-by-side - near critical-mass amounts, there's little radiation hazard involved with these materials re transport. It wouldn't fog the film either. Too lazy to look up the energies of the emissions, disintegration rates, etc, - but not a big deal -- as with fission products from reactors, with short half-lives and correspondingly huge emissions.

Dunno either about the W.Germany thing - it's a bit like "Made in China, 453 BC" on an artifact (?) I'd guess that's a shield of some kind because U is too hard to "stamp things" into its surface. Besides, it's pyrophoric = strike two sharp pieces together: just like a flint! with trails of sparks and smoke. Used to do that with DU (depleted U, used around accelerators as shielding..)

But I don't see why shielding's needed except maybe to smuggle and not trip lo-level detectors. U is a grayish metal, usually near-black via immediate oxidation in air - and it is near the densest stuff around (IIRC Osmium a bit denser).

They'll need a mass spectrometer to assess the isotopes present - should already have been done. You could deduce something also from measuring the energy and dpm - but you would get surface mostly, which might be seeded / as a scam (the U shields itself re lo-energy emissions from the central core - another reason the surface radiation is mostly inconsequential in the short term exposure, unless there's so much that fission is occurring at a low rate).

With 2000 Tons 'out there', created during our 45+ years of total panic-madness: ... no one could ever 'prove' it's all accounted for - even if we trusted governments more than we know we can ('t).


What me worry?

Ashton

familiarity breeds contempt.
did you know that a Pu sphere of critical mass feels warm to the touch? (*when imploded* that means; if crit mass uncompressed! well you can see no one would ever get to find out! even as a fizzle) - and it's a bit eerie in texture.. Maybe that odd 'feel' is nature's way of saying wordlessy:

You Stupid Fucking Species! are gonna mess up the planet for *all* life, not just your own sociopathic egos !!

Peace.