Do You Know? Archive
How many states have ratified the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty since its adoption by the United Nations General Assembly in 1996?
[Answer: A total of 156 states have ratified the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty. An additional 26 states have signed but not yet ratified the treaty."]
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How many ICBM launches does Russia have planned for 2012?
[Answer: Russia's Strategic Rocket Forces plan 11 ICBM launches in 2012]
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View the video below to see how the CTBTO is preparing to conduct on-site inspections and how the CTBTO’s verification and monitoring network operates.
[This video was prepared by the U.S. Mission to International Organizations in Vienna ]
[Video]
Under New START, when was the first six-month data update exchange between the United States and Russia?
[Answer: September 2011]
What country is the second-largest host to CTBT International Monitoring Site stations and radionuclide laboratories?
[Answer: Russia is the second largest host with 32 sites; the United States has 39 sites.]
What percentage of the planned 337 monitoring stations designed to detect nuclear explosions worldwide and help verify compliance with the CTBT were operational as of September 23, 2011?
[Answer: More than 85 percent of the planned 337 monitoring stations being built by the CTBTO are now operational.]
How many notifications have been exchanged between the United States and Russian Federation under the New START treaty as of September 9, 2011?
[Answer: 1,300]
How many nuclear explosions occurred at the former Soviet nuclear testing site at Semipalatinsk?
[Answer: 456]
On what date in 2011 will the International Day against Nuclear Tests be observed?
[Answer: Monday, August 29, 2011.]
Under New START, how many on-site inspections have the United States and Russia conducted as of July 28, 2011?
[Answer: The United States has conducted seven on-site inspections in Russia, and Russia has conducted five on-site inspections in the United States.]
When did the U.S.-Russian Plutonium Management and Disposition Agreement (PMDA) enter into force?
[Answer: July 13, 2011]
Under New START, when do pre-inspection restrictions (PIRs) go into effect at the inspection site?
[Answer: – No later than one hour after site designation. [Inspection Annex, Part Six, Section I, Paragraphs 1-4; also see Treaty Protocol, Part V, Section V, Paragraph 15 and Treaty Protocol, Part VI, Paragraph 3]
During which 10-year period were the most nuclear tests conducted?
[Answer: – From 1965 – 1974 a total of 621 nuclear tests were conducted by the five nuclear weapon states plus India: the United States (366), the Soviet Union (186), France (51), China (15), the United Kingdom (2), and India (1).]
What constitutes a "no first use pledge” and "negative security assurances” concerning nuclear weapons?
[Answer: When a nuclear weapon state adopts a universal "no-first-use pledge,” this is a pledge not to be the first party to use nuclear weapons in a conflict or crisis. "Negative security assurances” are pledges made by a nuclear weapon state not to use nuclear weapons against a non-nuclear weapon state.]
Who would decide whether or not to conduct an on-site inspection under the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT)?
[Answer: At least 30 of the 51 Executive Council members of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) would need to approve a request to conduct an on-site inspection under the CTBT. Any inspection request would be required to be based on detailed information about a suspicious event. This information would come from the data collected by the International Monitoring System (IMS) and, potentially, national monitoring systems. The inspection request would be sent it to the CTBTO Director General and Executive Council. The Director General would first forward the request to the state where the suspicious event occurred and request clarification. The resulting information, as well as the relevant IMS monitoring data, would then be made available to the Executive Council. If at least 30 Executive Council members support the request, the inspection would be approved to go forward.]
Which of the five nuclear weapon states have ratified the CTBT?
[Answer: France, the United Kingdom, and Russia. France and the United Kingdom ratified the CTBT on April 6, 1998; and the Russian Federation ratified the CTBT on June 30, 2000. Although both China and the United States signed the CTBT on September 24, 1996, they have yet to ratify it.]
According to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), an on-site inspection conducted to verify compliance with the CTBT would generally last between 25 to 60 days, with the possibility of another 70 day extension, for a maximum potential total of 130 days (four months).
The actual length of an inspection would depend on the specific inspection activities approved by the CTBTO Executive Council. Within 25 days after inspection approval, the inspection team is required to submit its first report. At that point, unless the majority of Executive Council members decide to discontinue the inspection, it can last up to 60 days.
During the second phase (days 26-60), which is called the continuation phase, mostly geophysical inspection techniques would be used. The inspection could be further prolonged by another 70 days should the inspection team consider this additional extension necessary. ]
What is the difference between a radionuclide laboratory and a radionuclide station?
[Answer: Radionuclide stations use air samples to detect radioactive particles released from atmospheric explosions or noble gases vented from underground and underwater explosions. Radionuclide laboratories then analyze those samples suspected of containing radionuclide material, which may have been produced by a nuclear explosion. For more information on how radionuclide technology works, as used by the International Monitoring System (IMS) at the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), click here.
Radionuclide Station
Radionuclide Laboratory
How long would an on-site inspection conducted to verify compliance with the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) take?
[Answer: Answer: Minimum 25 days; Maximum 130 days.
According to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), an on-site inspection conducted to verify compliance with the CTBT would generally last between 25 to 60 days, with the possibility of another 70 day extension, for a maximum potential total of 130 days (four months).
The actual length of an inspection would depend on the specific inspection activities approved by the CTBTO Executive Council. Within 25 days after inspection approval, the inspection team is required to submit its first report. At that point, unless the majority of Executive Council members decide to discontinue the inspection, it can last up to 60 days.
During the second phase (days 26-60), which is called the continuation phase, mostly geophysical inspection techniques would be used. The inspection could be further prolonged by another 70 days should the inspection team consider this additional extension necessary. ]
Which United Nations forum is currently negotiating a fissile material cutoff treaty?
[Answer: The Conference on Disarmament (CD) at the United Nations Office in Geneva (UNOG), Switzerland. http://www.unog.ch]
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