We found the WA radioactive capsule. But in 1980, Australia lost 2,200 kilograms of uranium oxide – stolen by a mine worker

IAEA, Dean Calma/Flickr, CC BY

The loss of a capsule of caesium-137, measuring 6mm by 8mm, dominated the news late last month. The capsule was found in the Western Australian outback on February 1, but in terms of losing radioactive material, we have been here before.

And in at least one case, the sheer amount of lost radioactive material dwarfed the recent WA incident.