Inverse modeling of the Chernobyl source term using atmospheric concentration and deposition measurements

Author(s): Nikolaos Evangeliou, Thomas Hamburger, Anne Cozic, Yves Balkanski, Andreas Stohl
Abstract: This paper describes the results of an inverse modeling study for the determination of the source term of the radionuclides ¹³⁴Cs, ¹³⁷Cs and ¹³¹I released after the Chernobyl accident. The accident occurred on 26 April 1986 in the Former Soviet Union and released about 1019 Bq of radioactive materials that were transported as far away as the USA and Japan. Thereafter, several attempts to assess the magnitude of the emissions were made that were based on the knowledge of the core inventory and the levels of the spent fuel. More recently, when modeling tools were further developed, inverse modeling techniques were applied to the Chernobyl case for source term quantification. However, because radioactivity is a sensitive topic for the public and attracts a lot of attention, high-quality measurements, which are essential for inverse modeling, were not made available except for a few sparse activity concentration measurements far from the source and far from the main direction of the radioactive fallout.
Organisation(s): Department of Meteorology and Geophysics
External organisation(s): Norwegian Institute for Air Research, Federal Office for Radiation Protection, Université de Versailles-Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines
Journal: Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
Volume: 17
Pages: 8805-8824
No. of pages: 20
ISSN: 1680-7316
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-8805-2017
Publication date: 07-2017
Peer reviewed: Yes
Austrian Fields of Science 2012: 105206 Meteorology
ASJC Scopus subject areas: Atmospheric Science
Portal url: https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/en/publications/3bcd1baa-f566-4bdf-ad98-7d1bf7f88323

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