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114-542: Designed largely for the U.S. Armed Forces' XM17 Modular Handgun System competition . Beretta had offered to provide their M9A3 model at a reduced price as a continuance of M9 procurement program, but were informed that the changes to the M9A3 were so significant that it fell outside the scope of an Engineering Change Proposal (ECP), and that the United States Department of Defense preferred to go through

228-426: A chemical shim produces small but non-negligible quantities of tritium. Tritium is also produced in heavy water-moderated reactors whenever a deuterium nucleus captures a neutron. This reaction has a small absorption cross section , making heavy water a good neutron moderator , and relatively little tritium is produced. Even so, cleaning tritium from the moderator may be desirable after several years to reduce

342-530: A warhead is continually undergoing radioactive decay, becoming unavailable for fusion. Also, its decay product , helium-3, absorbs neutrons. This can offset or reverse the intended effect of the tritium, which was to generate many free neutrons, if too much helium-3 has accumulated. Therefore, boosted bombs need fresh tritium periodically. The estimated quantity needed is 4 grams (0.14 oz) per warhead. To maintain constant levels of tritium, about 0.20 grams (0.0071 oz) per warhead per year must be supplied to

456-648: A fixed production rate, and losses proportional to the inventory. Tritium for American nuclear weapons was produced in special heavy water reactors at the Savannah River Site until their closures in 1988. With the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) after the end of the Cold War , the existing supplies were sufficient for the new, smaller number of nuclear weapons for some time. 225 kg (496 lb) of tritium

570-525: A helium-cooled pebble bed, also known as a breeder blanket. High-energy neutrons can also produce tritium from lithium-7 in an endothermic reaction, consuming 2.466 MeV. This was discovered when the 1954 Castle Bravo nuclear test produced an unexpectedly high yield. Prior to this test, it was incorrectly assumed that 3 Li would absorb a neutron to become 3 Li , which would beta-decay to 4 Be , which in turn would decay to two 2 He nuclei on

684-478: A moderator of a natural uranium reactor which needs to keep neutron absorption outside the fuel as low as feasible. Some facilities that remove tritium also remove (or at least reduce the content of) O and O, which can – at least in principle – be used for isotope labeling . India, which also has a large fleet of pressurized heavy water reactors (initially CANDU technology but since indigenized and further developed IPHWR technology), also removes at least some of

798-838: A new procurement instead. If the Beretta APX had won the MHS competition, it would have been manufactured in the Beretta factory in Gallatin, Tennessee. The Army Times reported on January 19, 2017 that the winner of the MHS competition was the SIG-Sauer P320 , but the APX performed well, passing every test in the competition. According to Beretta, the pistol can withstand a 45,000-round firing schedule with 5,000 rounds between stoppages. Soon after, on February 28, 2017, Beretta USA announced

912-558: A role and domain. The Army conducts land operations. The Navy and Marine Corps conduct maritime operations, the Marine Corps specializing in amphibious and maritime littoral operations primarily for supporting the Navy. The Air Force conducts air operations. The Space Force conducts space operations. The Coast Guard is unique in that it specializes in maritime operations and is also a law enforcement agency. From their inception during

1026-683: A single organization. The mission of Army Aviation is to find, fix and destroy any enemy through fire and maneuver and to provide combat support and combat service support in coordinated operations as an integral member of the combined arms team. Major aircraft include the AH-64 Apache , which serves as the Army's attack helicopter, the UH-60 Black Hawk , and the CH-47 Chinook for troop and cargo transport. Army Aviation also flies

1140-458: A special operations force, Army Rangers are generally better equipped than standard infantry, utilizing the FN SCAR rifle. Army Special Forces , commonly known as Green Berets after their iconic headgear, are among the most elite soldiers in the Army. Special Forces conduct: Army Special Forces are trained in military free-fall parachuting and combat diver skillsets. They are considered

1254-406: A total timeframe much longer than the duration of the explosion. High-energy neutrons irradiating boron-10 , also occasionally produce tritium: A more common result of boron-10 neutron capture is Li and a single alpha particle . Especially in pressurized water reactors which only partially thermalize neutrons, the interaction between relatively fast neutrons and the boric acid added as

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1368-415: Is 9,650 curies per gram (3.57 × 10   Bq /g). Tritium figures prominently in studies of nuclear fusion due to its favorable reaction cross section and the large amount of energy (17.6 MeV) produced through its reaction with deuterium: All atomic nuclei contain protons as their only charged particles. They therefore repel one another because like charges repel ( Coulomb's law ). However, if

1482-468: Is a gas at standard temperature and pressure . Combined with oxygen , it forms tritiated water ( H 2 O ). Compared to hydrogen in its natural composition on Earth, tritium has a higher melting point (20.62 K vs. 13.99 K), a higher boiling point (25.04 K vs. 20.27 K), a higher critical temperature (40.59 K vs. 32.94 K) and a higher critical pressure (1.8317 MPa vs. 1.2858 MPa). Tritium's specific activity

1596-469: Is about 0.19 millibarn and that of oxygen-17 ( O) is about 240 millibarns. While O is by far the most common isotope of oxygen in both natural oxygen and heavy water; depending on the method of isotope separation , heavy water may be slightly richer in O and O . Due to both neutron capture and (n, α ) reactions (the latter of which produce C , an undesirable long-lived beta emitter, from O) they are net "neutron consumers" and are thus undesirable in

1710-402: Is also an automatic striker block safety. The trigger mechanism features a drop safety. If the pistol is dropped, this prevents inertia from causing the trigger to fire the weapon, thus preventing accidental discharge. The APX is used by professionals in more than 20 countries. Some examples: United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of

1824-404: Is an important component in nuclear weapons; it is used to enhance the efficiency and yield of fission bombs and the fission stages of hydrogen bombs in a process known as " boosting " as well as in external neutron initiators for such weapons. These are devices incorporated in nuclear weapons which produce a pulse of neutrons when the bomb is detonated to initiate the fission reaction in

1938-399: Is another isotope of hydrogen, which occurs naturally with an abundance of 0.015%. Their experiment could not isolate tritium, which was first accomplished in 1939 by Luis Alvarez and Robert Cornog , who also realized tritium's radioactivity. Willard Libby recognized in 1954 that tritium could be used for radiometric dating of water and wine . The half life of tritium is listed by

2052-484: Is based on outdated dose calculation standards of National Bureau of Standards Handbook 69 circa 1963. Four millirem per year is about 1.3% of the natural background radiation (~3 mSv). For comparison, the banana equivalent dose (BED) is set at 0.1 μSv, so the statutory limit in the US is set at 400 BED. Updated dose calculation standards based on International Commission on Radiological Protection Report 30 and used in

2166-521: Is extremely rare on Earth. The atmosphere has only trace amounts, formed by the interaction of its gases with cosmic rays . It can be produced artificially by irradiation of lithium or lithium-bearing ceramic pebbles in a nuclear reactor and is a low-abundance byproduct in normal operations of nuclear reactors. Tritium is used as the energy source in radioluminescent lights for watches, night sights for firearms, numerous instruments and tools, and novelty items such as self-illuminating key chains. It

2280-555: Is led by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , who is the military head of the armed forces and principal advisor to the president and secretary of defense on military matters. Their deputy is the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff . Other members include the chief of staff of the Army , commandant of the Marine Corps , chief of naval operations , chief of staff of the Air Force , chief of space operations , and

2394-550: Is no practical separation technology on an industrial scale. Accordingly, a controlled environmental release is said to be the best way to treat low-tritium-concentration water." After a public information campaign sponsored by the Japanese government, the gradual release into the sea of the tritiated water began on 24 August 2023 and is the first of four releases through March 2024. The entire process will take "decades" to complete. China reacted with protest. The IAEA has endorsed

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2508-584: Is now one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Should it be called into active duty again, it would constitute a seventh branch of the Armed Forces. The United States Space Force was established as an independent service on 20 December 2019. It is the sixth branch of the U.S. military and the first new branch in 72 years. The origin of the Space Force can be traced back to

2622-758: Is the same as the APX A0 Centurion, but with all the improvements of the A1 and incorporating the fiber-optic front sight from the APX Target. The APX A1 Compact Tactical is identical to the A1 Compact but with the green frame, threaded barrel and suppressor height sights of the A1 Tactical. New production A1 full size models come with the fiber-optic front sight from the APX A1 Compact instead of

2736-527: Is the world's 12th-largest maritime force. The history of the U.S. Armed Forces dates back to 14 June 1775, with the creation of the Continental Army , even before the Declaration of Independence marked the establishment of the United States. The Continental Navy , established on 13 October 1775, and Continental Marines , established on 10 November 1775, were created in close succession by

2850-555: Is unique in that it is a military branch specializing in maritime operations and also a law enforcement agency. The United States Army (USA) is the United States Armed Forces' land force and is the largest and oldest service. Originally established in 1775 as the Continental Army , it consists of one million soldiers across the Regular Army, Army Reserve , and Army National Guard . The Army serves as

2964-531: Is used in a medical and scientific setting as a radioactive tracer . Tritium is also used as a nuclear fusion fuel, along with more abundant deuterium , in tokamak reactors and in hydrogen bombs . Tritium has also been used commercially in Betavoltaic devices such as NanoTritium batteries . Tritium was first detected in 1934 by Ernest Rutherford , Mark Oliphant and Paul Harteck after bombarding deuterium with deuterons (deuterium nuclei). Deuterium

3078-421: Is used in self-powered lighting devices called betalights , which are used for night illumination of firearm sights, watches, exit signs , map lights, navigational compasses (such as current-use M-1950 U.S. military compasses ), knives and a variety of other devices. As of 2000 , commercial demand for tritium is 400 grams (0.88 lb) per year and the cost is $ 30,000 per gram ($ 850,000/oz) or more. Tritium

3192-723: The 10th Mountain Division , 11th Airborne Division , 25th Infantry Division , 82nd Airborne Division , 101st Airborne Division , and 173rd Airborne Brigade have a cavalry squadron equipped with the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle . The Field Artillery's mission is to destroy, suppress or neutralize the enemy by cannon, rocket or missile fire. Rocket systems include the M142 HIMARS and M270 multiple launch rocket system , which are corps-level assets found in field artillery brigades. Towed artillery includes

3306-523: The 11th Airborne Division , 82nd Airborne Division , and 173rd Airborne Brigade are capable of airborne operations, in cooperation with the U.S. Air Force's transport aircraft. Finally, Infantry Brigade Combat Teams assigned to the 10th Mountain Division specialize in mountain warfare . Standard Infantry Brigade Combat Teams are assigned to the 25th Infantry Division , which offers additional training in jungle warfare . Armored Brigade Combat Teams comprise mechanized infantry battalions mounted in

3420-400: The 4th Infantry Division . Each Armored Brigade Combat Team also possesses a cavalry squadron equipped with M2 Bradleys for scouting and security. Stryker Brigade Combat Teams from the 2nd Infantry Division , 4th Infantry Division , 11th Airborne Division , 2nd Cavalry Regiment , and 3rd Cavalry Regiment have a cavalry squadron equipped with Strykers . Infantry Brigade Combat Teams from

3534-524: The 75th Ranger Regiment are an elite special operations infantry force in the United States Army Special Operations Command , specializing in air assault and airborne infiltration methods. The three primary missions of the 75th Ranger Regiment are special operations raids , forcible entry operations, such as an airfield seizure to enable the Air Force to bring in more forces, and special reconnaissance . As

Beretta APX - Misplaced Pages Continue

3648-749: The Air Force Space Command , which was formed 1 September 1982 and was a major command of the United States Air Force. The U.S. Congressional Research Office annually publishes a List of Notable Deployments of U.S. Military Forces Overseas since 1798. Presidential command over the U.S. Armed Forces is established in Article II in the Constitution whereby the president is named as the " Commander in Chief of

3762-546: The American Revolutionary War , the U.S. Armed Forces have played a decisive role in the country's history . They helped forge a sense of national unity and identity through victories in the early-19th-century First and Second Barbary Wars . They played a critical role in the territorial evolution of the U.S. , including the American Civil War . The National Security Act of 1947 created

3876-538: The Department of the Navy , which is a military department under the leadership of the secretary of the Navy and the under secretary of the Navy . The U.S. Marine Corps itself is led by the commandant of the Marine Corps and the assistant commandant of the Marine Corps , both generals who are advised by the sergeant major of the Marine Corps . The Marine Corps statutory mission is outlined in 10 U.S.C.   § 5063 and as originally introduced under

3990-690: The FIM-92 Stinger man-portable air-defense system , AN/TWQ-1 Avenger for short range air defense , and the counter rocket, artillery, and mortar 20mm gun system. The Iron Dome provides air defense against rockets, artillery, mortars, missiles, and unmanned aerial vehicles. The MIM-104 Patriot is capable of defeating a wide range of threats including aircraft, helicopters, UAVs, ballistic and cruise missiles, and Weapons of Mass Destruction. The Terminal High Altitude Area Defense protects strategic critical assets by conducting long-range endo-and-exo-atmospheric engagements of ballistic missiles using

4104-620: The M119 howitzer in infantry brigade combat teams and the M777 howitzer found in both infantry and Stryker brigade combat teams. The M109 self-propelled howitzer is utilized in armored brigade combat teams. During the Cold War, Army field artillery was responsible for the service's ballistic missile programs, including the PGM-11 Redstone , which was the first large ballistic missile in

4218-671: The M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicle . Divisions with Armored Brigade Combat Teams include the 1st Infantry Division , 3rd Infantry Division , 4th Infantry Division , 1st Armored Division , and 1st Cavalry Division . Stryker Brigade Combat Teams are centered around Stryker infantry battalions operating out of the Stryker . Divisions with Stryker Brigade Combat Teams include the 2nd Infantry Division , 4th Infantry Division , 11th Airborne Division , 2nd Cavalry Regiment , and 3rd Cavalry Regiment . United States Army Rangers with

4332-712: The MQ-1C Gray Eagle drone. A specialized unit within Army Aviation, the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) serves as a special operations unit and operates modified variants of the MH-60 Black Hawk, MH-47 Chinook, and the MH-6 Little Bird . The U.S. Army is organized into four major Army Commands, nine Army Service Component Commands which serve as the Army component and joint force land component commanders for

4446-534: The Marine Corps Reserve . The Marine Corps maintains a very close relationship with the U.S. Navy, its sister service in the Department of the Navy. Although the Marine Corps has previously operated as an independent land force alongside the Army, its primary purpose is to serve as part of a unified naval service alongside the Navy in the maritime domain. The U.S. Marine Corps is organized under

4560-477: The National Institute of Standards and Technology as 4,500 ± 8 days ( 12.32 ± 0.02 years ) – an annualized rate of approximately 5.5% per year. Tritium decays into helium-3 by beta-minus decay as shown in this nuclear equation: releasing 18.6  keV of energy in the process. The electron 's kinetic energy varies, with an average of 5.7 keV, while the remaining energy is carried off by

4674-483: The National Security Act of 1947 , with its three primary areas of responsibility including: Tritium Tritium (from Ancient Greek τρίτος (trítos)  'third') or hydrogen-3 (symbol T or H ) is a rare and radioactive isotope of hydrogen with half-life ~12.3 years. The tritium nucleus (t, sometimes called a triton ) contains one proton and two neutrons , whereas

Beretta APX - Misplaced Pages Continue

4788-738: The Second Continental Congress in order to defend the new nation against the British Empire in the American Revolutionary War . These forces demobilized in 1784 after the Treaty of Paris ended the Revolutionary War. The Congress of the Confederation created the current United States Army on 3 June 1784. The United States Congress created the current United States Navy on 27 March 1794 and

4902-602: The United States . The armed forces consist of six service branches : the Army , Marine Corps , Navy , Air Force , Space Force , and Coast Guard . All six armed services are among the eight uniformed services of the United States , along with the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps . Each of the different military services is assigned

5016-554: The chief of the National Guard Bureau . The commandant of the Coast Guard is not an official member of the Joint Chiefs, but sometimes attends meetings as one of the military service chiefs. The senior enlisted advisor to the chairman is the most senior enlisted member in the United States Armed Forces. Leadership of the Armed Forces, to include the president of the United States, the secretary of defense ,

5130-533: The deputy secretary of defense , deputy secretary of homeland security , and vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff . Military leadership, including the secretary of defense, the secretary of Homeland Security, and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff also sit on the National Space Council . Unified combatant commands are joint military commands consisting of forces from multiple military departments, with their chain of command flowing from

5244-603: The joint force land component , Navy components are typically dual-hatted as the joint force maritime component , and Air Force components are typically dual-hatted as the joint force air component , with the theater special operations command dual-hatted as the joint force special operations component, and Space Force component typically dual-hatted as the joint force space component. Combat support agencies are Department of Defense agencies with combat support missions that service operating forces planning or conducting military operations. This includes support during conflict or in

5358-558: The secretary of Homeland Security and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff are members of the United States National Security Council , which advises the president on national security, military, and foreign policy matters. The national security advisor , the homeland security advisor , and the deputy national security advisor may also be members of the United States Armed Forces. The National Security Council Deputies Committee also includes

5472-410: The sergeant major of the Army . The Army's primary responsibility is to conduct prompt and sustained land combat as part of the joint force. Army landpower focuses on destroying an enemy's armed forces, occupying its territory, and breaking the will of an adversary. The five core competencies of the Army are: The thirteen specified functions of the Army are: The Infantry Branch forms the core of

5586-402: The tritium front sight from older A1 models. The A1 Carry also now has the same disassembly lever as the other guns in the APX platform. The APX is Beretta's first striker-fired duty-sized handgun. The name APX refers to "Advanced Pistol X" (the "X" referring to a caliber of choice), as the firearm is fully modular and can change calibers and frame sizes somewhat easily. In order to comply with

5700-541: The unified combatant commands , and thirteen direct reporting units. The United States Marine Corps (USMC) serves as the U.S. Armed Forces' naval land force, responsible for executing amphibious warfare and operating in the maritime littorals in support of the U.S. Navy. Originally established in 1775 as the Continental Marines , the Marine Corps consists of the Regular Marine Corps and

5814-616: The A0 needs to use its original recoil spring. Current APX A1 models include the standard full size, the APX A1 Tactical, APX A1 Compact (which has same dimensions as the APX A0 Centurion), APX A1 Compact Tactical, and APX A1 Carry (subcompact version). The APX A1 Tactical comes from the factory with three 21-round magazines, an olive-drab green frame, a threaded barrel and blacked-out suppressor height sights. The APX A1 Compact

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5928-521: The APX Target is a 20 to 30 percent more accurate than a standard full-size APX, adding "It’s the most accurate APX we’ve ever built". The slide also retained the optics-ready capability from the APX Combat and RDO models, but the sights have been changed to a fiber-optic front sight and a blacked out rear sight for competition. In addition to the changes to the slide and barrel, the frame is "wolf grey" colored and also has no finger grooves to better suit

6042-516: The APX also features a MIL-STD-1913 rail under the front of the frame. Unlike the Beretta 92 series, the APX uses the traditional Browning tilting-barrel short recoil design. The serialized part of the gun is a stainless steel chassis which allows true modular reconfiguration. by allowing the factory black frame to be changed with a number of different options, including flat dark earth (FDE), tan , wolf grey and olive drab . Replacement frames are also available without finger grooves. Initially,

6156-624: The APX availability for the US civilian market starting on April 15, 2017. In 2018, three variants of the APX were announced: the APX Centurion, with a slightly smaller frame, slide and barrel, and the APX Compact, with a subcompact-sized frame, slide and barrel, and the APX Combat, with a threaded barrel and a mounting plate for optics on the slide. Beretta started selling frames with and without finger grooves in black, olive green, flat dark earth (FDE), and grey. In 2019, Beretta lowered

6270-491: The Air Force through its Air and Missile Defense Commands and the Space Force through Army Space and Missile Defense Command, given their shared missile defense and space roles. In 1962, Air Defense Artillery achieved the first intercept of a ballistic missile with a nuclear-tipped Nike Zeus and operated the Nike Zeus as an anti-satellite weapon after completing a successful intercept in 1963. Army Aviation, distinct from

6384-416: The Armed Forces principal land service, responsible for conducting land warfare operations. The U.S. Army is organized under the Department of the Army , which is a military department under the leadership of the secretary of the Army and under secretary of the Army . The U.S. Army itself is led by the chief of staff of the Army and vice chief of staff of the Army , both generals who are advised by

6498-593: The Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States." The United States Armed Forces are split between two cabinet departments, with the Department of Defense serving as the primary cabinet department for military affairs and the Department of Homeland Security responsible for administering the United States Coast Guard . The military chain of command flows from

6612-496: The Centurion and Compact models. The Centurion Combat was also introduced, which has a threaded barrel and mounting plate like the full-size APX Combat. Finally, the APX Target was introduced in 2020, which is a competition variant of the APX with a longer slide and 4.7-inch pre-tensioned barrel; these are fitted to each other at the factory to ensure greater accuracy. Erik Stern, the product manager at Beretta’s Pro Shop, said that

6726-602: The Darlington Tritium Recovery Facility (DTRF) attached to the 3,512 MW electric Darlington Nuclear Generating Station in Ontario. The total production at DTRF between 1989 and 2011 was 42.5 kilograms (94 lb) – with an activity of 409 megacuries (15,100 PBq): an average of about 2 kilograms (4.4 lb) per year. Deuterium's absorption cross section for thermal neutrons is about 0.52 millibarn , whereas that of oxygen-16 ( O)

6840-629: The Department of Defense's military departments. The United States Coast Guard is nominally under the Department of Homeland Security , but may be transferred to the Department of Defense's Department of the Navy (which is the civilian entity that oversees the coequal U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Navy) at the direction of the President or Congress. With the exception of the Coast Guard, the military services only organize, train, and equip forces. The unified combatant commands are responsible for operational control of non-service retained forces. Each of

6954-409: The MHS specification, the firearms must support different grip sizes to fit shooters of different stature. The APX has replaceable grip straps. The distance from the axis of the barrel to the top of the handgrip has been kept to a minimum of 21 mm (0.83 in) in order to reduce muzzle rise, which increases the ability to accurately fire quick follow-up shots. As specified in the MHS specification,

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7068-699: The MSRP of the APX from $ 499 to $ 399 in an attempt to be more competitive in the oversaturated polymer striker-fired market. That same year, in April, Beretta introduced the APX Carry, a single stack magazine variant intended for the concealed carry market. (The APX Carry is based on the Beretta Nano design with some design features incorporated from the full sized APX.) In July of that year, Beretta introduced three more designs, starting with flat dark earth variants of

7182-586: The NRC Regulation 10CFR20 results in a dose of 0.9 millirem (9 μSv) per year at 740 Bq/L (20 nCi/L). Tritiation of drug candidates allows detailed analysis of their absorption and metabolism . Tritium has also been used for biological radiometric assays, in a process akin to radiocarbon dating . For example, [ H] retinyl acetate was traced through the bodies of rats. The beta particles from small amounts of tritium cause chemicals called phosphors to glow. This radioluminescence

7296-512: The President of the United States to the secretary of defense (for services under the Defense Department) or secretary of homeland security (for services under the Department of Homeland Security), ensuring civilian control of the military . Within the Department of Defense, the military departments ( Department of the Army , United States Department of the Navy , and Department of the Air Force ) are civilian led entities that oversee

7410-588: The Tritiated Water Task Force released a report on the status of tritium in tritiated water at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant , as part of considering options for final disposal of the stored contaminated cooling water. This identified that the March 2016 holding of tritium on-site was 760  TBq (equivalent to 2.1 g of tritium or 14 mL of pure tritiated water) in a total of 860,000 m of stored water. This report also identified

7524-471: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency , self-illuminating exit signs improperly disposed in municipal landfills have been found to contaminate waterways. The legal limits for tritium in drinking water vary widely from country to country. Some figures are given below: The American limit results in a dose of 4.0  millirems (or 40 micro sieverts in SI units ) per year per EPA regulation 40CFR141, and

7638-489: The U.S. Air Force and its predecessors, began as part of the field artillery in 1942. Small spotter planes were used to spot for artillery and naval bombardment, as well as to perform observation. These few aircraft formed the core of Army Aviation once the U.S. Air Force gained independence. In 1983, the Army created the Aviation Branch, for the first time since the Air Force's independence consolidating aviation under

7752-528: The U.S. arsenal, the MGM-31 Pershing , and the Pershing II . In 2023, the Army is intending to field the Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon and has reestablished larger artillery formations like the 56th Artillery Command . The Air Defense Artillery is responsible for defending geopolitical assets and providing maneuver forces with the freedom to move on the battlefield by deterring the enemy and destroying aerial threats, missile attacks, and surveillance platforms. Weapons employed by Air Defense Artillery include

7866-929: The US. In one case, leaking water contained 7.5 microcuries (280 kBq) of tritium per liter, which is 375 times the current EPA limit for drinking water, and 28 times the World Health Organization 's recommended limit. This is equivalent to 0.777 nanograms per litre (5.45 × 10  gr/imp gal) or roughly 0.8 parts per trillion . The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission states that in normal operation in 2003, 56 pressurized water reactors released 40,600 curies (1,500,000 GBq) of tritium (maximum: 2,080 Ci (77,000 GBq); minimum: 0.1 Ci (3.7 GBq); average: 725 Ci (26,800 GBq)) and 24 boiling water reactors released 665 Ci (24.6 TBq) (maximum: 174 Ci (6,400 GBq); minimum: 0 Ci; average: 27.7 Ci (1,020 GBq)), in liquid effluents. 40,600 Ci (1,500,000 GBq) of tritium weigh about 4.207 grams (0.1484 oz). According to

7980-421: The United States is the United States Armed Forces' commander-in-chief . The United States Coast Guard traces its origin to the formation of the Revenue Cutter Service on 4 August 1790, which merged with the United States Life-Saving Service on 28 January 1915 to establish the Coast Guard. The United States Air Force was established as an independent service on 18 September 1947; it traces its origin to

8094-482: The armed forces and forms military policy with the DoD and Department of Homeland Security (DHS), both federal executive departments , acting as the principal organs by which military policy is carried out. The U.S. Armed Forces are one of the world's largest military forces in terms of personnel. They draw their personnel from a large pool of professional volunteers . The U.S. has used military conscription , but not since 1973. The Selective Service System retains

8208-513: The atoms have a high enough temperature and pressure (for example, in the core of the Sun), then their random motions can overcome such repulsion, and they can come close enough for the strong nuclear force to take effect, fusing them into heavier atoms. A tritium nucleus (triton), containing one proton and two neutrons, has the same charge as any hydrogen nucleus, and it experiences the same electrostatic repulsion when close to another nucleus. However,

8322-410: The coequal military service branches organized within each department. The military departments and services are responsible for organizing, training, and equipping forces, with the actual chain of command flowing through the unified combatant commands . The Joint Chiefs of Staff , although outside the operational chain of command, is the senior-most military body in the United States Armed Forces. It

8436-553: The competition striker and trigger assembly. Other improvements include Beretta's "Aqua Tech Shield" finish on both the slide and barrel, a stainless steel chassis and a heavier competition-grade flat recoil spring to reduce recoil. There are also no finger grooves on the APX A1 full size frame, though users may use the A0 frames with finger grooves due to parts interchangeability. Slides and other parts will also interchange between A0 and A1 models, however in order to ensure proper function,

8550-677: The conduct of other military activities related to countering threats to U.S. national security. This mission is focused on providing support to echelons at the CCMD level and below and may not encompass the full scope of the CSA's mission. The United States Armed Forces is composed of six coequal military service branches. Five of the branches, the United States Army , United States Marine Corps , United States Navy , United States Air Force , and United States Space Force , are organized under

8664-475: The current United States Marine Corps on 11 July 1798. All three services trace their origins to their respective Continental predecessors. The 1787 adoption of the Constitution gave Congress the power to "raise and support armies," to "provide and maintain a navy", and to "make rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval forces", as well as the power to declare war . The President of

8778-409: The decay (along with that of rhenium-187 ) useful for absolute neutrino mass measurements in the laboratory. The low energy of tritium's radiation makes it difficult to detect tritium-labeled compounds except by using liquid scintillation counting . Tritium is most often produced in nuclear reactors by neutron activation of lithium-6 . The release and diffusion of tritium and helium produced by

8892-410: The design are the slide and frame construction. The slide has deeper and more aggressive slide serrations that are more conventional, and the frame has a higher, undercut trigger guard and an enhanced beavertail. Many of the improvements were taken directly from the competition-oriented APX Target, including the blacked-out rear sight, the red-dot standard slide, the lack of finger grooves on the frame and

9006-401: The different military services is assigned a role and domain. The U.S. Army conducts land operations, while the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps conduct maritime operations, with the Marine Corps specializing in amphibious and maritime littoral operations in support of the Navy. The U.S. Air Force conducts air operations, while the U.S. Space Force conducts space operations. The U.S. Coast Guard

9120-513: The enactment of the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty proved to be unexpectedly useful to oceanographers. The high levels of tritium oxide introduced into upper layers of the oceans have been used in the years since then to measure the rate of mixing of the upper layers of the oceans with their lower levels. Since tritium is a low energy beta (β) emitter , it is not dangerous externally (its β particles cannot penetrate

9234-451: The environment. The biological half-life of tritiated water in the human body, which is a measure of body water turn-over, varies with the season. Studies on the biological half-life of occupational radiation workers for free water tritium in a coastal region of Karnataka , India, show that the biological half-life in winter is twice that of the summer. If tritium exposure is suspected or known, drinking uncontaminated water will help replace

9348-443: The fission fuel depletes and also explodes outward, it falls below the density needed to stay critical by itself, but the fusion neutrons make the fission process progress faster and continue longer than it would without boosting. Increased yield comes overwhelmingly from the increased fission. The energy from the fusion itself is much smaller because the amount of fusion fuel is much smaller. Effects of boosting include: The tritium in

9462-672: The fission of lithium can take place within ceramics known as breeder ceramics . Production of tritium from lithium-6 in such breeder ceramics is possible with neutrons of any energy, though the cross section is higher when the incident neutrons have lower energy, reaching more than 900 barns for thermal neutrons . This is an exothermic reaction, yielding 4.8  MeV . In comparison, fusion of deuterium with tritium releases about 17.6 MeV. For applications in proposed fusion energy reactors, such as ITER , pebbles consisting of lithium bearing ceramics including Li 2 TiO 3 and Li 4 SiO 4 , are being developed for tritium breeding within

9576-431: The fissionable core (pit) of the bomb, after it is compressed to a critical mass by explosives. Actuated by an ultrafast switch like a krytron , a small particle accelerator drives ions of tritium and deuterium to energies above the 15  keV or so needed for deuterium-tritium fusion and directs them into a metal target where the tritium and deuterium are adsorbed as hydrides . High-energy fusion neutrons from

9690-453: The force around the world, including around 800 military bases outside the U.S. The U.S. Air Force is the world's largest air force, followed by the U.S. Army Aviation Branch . The U.S. Naval Air Forces is the fourth-largest air arm in the world and is the largest naval aviation service, while U.S. Marine Corps Aviation is the world's seventh-largest air arm. The U.S. Navy is the world's largest navy by tonnage . The U.S. Coast Guard

9804-609: The formation of the Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps , which was formed 1 August 1907 and was part of the Army Air Forces before being recognized as an independent service in the National Security Act of 1947. The United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps was formerly considered to be a branch of the United States Armed Forces from 29 July 1945 until 3 July 1952, and

9918-420: The metabolism of OBT is less understood than that of H HO. Tritium can incorporate to RNA and DNA molecules within organisms which can lead to somatic and genetic impacts. These can emerge in later generations. H HO has a short biological half-life in the human body of 7 to 14 days, which both reduces the total effects of single-incident ingestion and precludes long-term bioaccumulation of H HO from

10032-550: The modern U.S. military framework, establishing the National Military Establishment (later the Department of Defense or DoD) headed by the secretary of defense and creating both the U.S. Air Force and National Security Council ; in 1949, an amendment to the act merged the cabinet-level departments of the Army, Navy, and Air Force into the DoD. The president of the U.S. is the commander-in-chief of

10146-407: The most important reaction for natural production, a fast neutron (which must have energy greater than 4.0  MeV ) interacts with atmospheric nitrogen : Worldwide, the production of tritium from natural sources is 148 peta becquerels per year. The global equilibrium inventory of tritium created by natural sources remains approximately constant at 2,590 petabecquerels. This is due to

10260-685: The most versatile special operations force in the entire world, operating as a multi-purpose force since 1952. The Armor Branch traces its history back to the United States Cavalry and are responsible for tank and cavalry reconnaissance operations. The U.S. Army fields the M1 Abrams main battle tank in Armored Battalions as part of Armored Brigade Combat Teams across the 1st Armored Division , 1st Cavalry Division , 1st Infantry Division , 3rd Infantry Division , and

10374-409: The nearly undetectable electron antineutrino . Beta particles from tritium can penetrate only about 6.0 millimetres (0.24 in) of air, and they are incapable of passing through the dead outermost layer of human skin. Because of their low energy compared to other beta particles, the amount of bremsstrahlung generated is also lower. The unusually low energy released in the tritium beta decay makes

10488-405: The needs of competition shooters. The frame also features an extended magazine release and slide stop, as well as a green striker guide for a competition trigger. The APX Target trigger is half a pound (~2.2 N) lighter than a standard model and has a shorter reset. The APX Target also came with four 17-round magazines, because competitive shooters need more magazines for use in matches. The APX Target

10602-401: The neutrons in the triton increase the attractive strong nuclear force when close enough to another nucleus. As a result, tritium can fuse more easily with other light atoms, than ordinary hydrogen can. The same is true, albeit to a lesser extent, of deuterium. This is why brown dwarfs ("failed" stars ) cannot fuse normal hydrogen, but they do fuse a small minority of deuterium nuclei. Like

10716-408: The nucleus of the common isotope hydrogen-1 ( protium ) contains one proton and no neutrons, and that of non-radioactive hydrogen-2 ( deuterium ) contains one proton and one neutron. Tritium is the heaviest particle-bound isotope of hydrogen. It is one of the few nuclides with a distinct name. The use of the name hydrogen-3, though more systematic, is much less common. Naturally occurring tritium

10830-498: The operation of nuclear reactors , especially in the reprocessing of nuclear fuel and storage of spent nuclear fuel . The production of tritium is not a goal, but a side-effect. It is discharged to the atmosphere in small quantities by some nuclear power plants. Voloxidation is an optional additional step in nuclear reprocessing that removes volatile fission products (such as all isotopes of hydrogen) before an aqueous process begins. This would in principle enable economic recovery of

10944-476: The other isotopes of hydrogen , tritium is difficult to confine. Rubber, plastic, and some kinds of steel are all somewhat permeable. This has raised concerns that if tritium were used in large quantities, in particular for fusion reactors , it might contribute to radioactive contamination , though its short half-life should prevent significant long-term accumulation in the atmosphere. The high levels of atmospheric nuclear weapons testing that took place prior to

11058-448: The pit. Before detonation, a few grams of tritium–deuterium gas are injected into the hollow " pit " of fissile material. The early stages of the fission chain reaction supply enough heat and compression to start deuterium–tritium fusion; then both fission and fusion proceed in parallel, the fission assisting the fusion by continuing heating and compression, and the fusion assisting the fission with highly energetic (14.1- MeV ) neutrons. As

11172-510: The plan. The water released is diluted to reduce the tritium concentration to less than 1500 Bq/L, far below the limit recommended in drinking water by the WHO. Tritium's decay product helium-3 has a very large cross section (5330 barns) for reacting with thermal neutrons , expelling a proton; hence, it is rapidly converted back to tritium in nuclear reactors . Tritium occurs naturally due to cosmic rays interacting with atmospheric gases. In

11286-614: The power to conscript males, requiring the registration of all male citizens and residents of the U.S. between the ages of 18 and 25. The U.S. Armed Forces are considered the world's most powerful military, especially since the end of the Cold War . The military expenditure of the U.S. was US$ 916 billion in 2023, the highest in the world, accounting for 37% of the world's defense expenditures . The U.S. Armed Forces has significant capabilities in both defense and power projection due to its large budget, resulting in advanced and powerful technologies which enable widespread deployment of

11400-438: The president, to the secretary of defense, to the commanders of the combatant commands. Each service organizes, trains, and equips forces that are then presented to the unified combatant commands through service component commands. Special Operations Command and Cyber Command also present theater special operations commands or joint force headquarters – cyber to other combatant commanders. Army components are typically dual-hatted as

11514-470: The produced tritium but even if the tritium is only disposed and not used, it has the potential to reduce tritium contamination in the water used, reducing radioactivity released when the water is discharged since tritiated water cannot be removed from "ordinary" water except by isotope separation. Given the specific activity of tritium at 9,650 curies per gram (357 TBq/g), one TBq is equivalent to roughly 2.8 milligrams (0.043 gr). In June 2016

11628-634: The reactors of the commercial Watts Bar Nuclear Plant from 2003 to 2005 followed by extraction of tritium from the rods at the Tritium Extraction Facility at the Savannah River Site beginning in November 2006. Tritium leakage from the rods during reactor operations limits the number that can be used in any reactor without exceeding the maximum allowed tritium levels in the coolant. Tritium has an atomic mass of 3.016 049 28   Da . Diatomic tritium ( T 2 or H 2 )

11742-417: The reducing concentration of tritium in the water extracted from the buildings etc. for storage, seeing a factor of ten decrease over the five years considered (2011–2016), 3.3 MBq/L to 0.3 MBq/L (after correction for the 5% annual decay of tritium). According to a report by an expert panel considering the best approach to dealing with this issue, " Tritium could be separated theoretically , but there

11856-400: The resulting fusion radiate in all directions. Some of these strike plutonium or uranium nuclei in the primary's pit, initiating a nuclear chain reaction . The quantity of neutrons produced is large in absolute numbers, allowing the pit to quickly achieve neutron levels that would otherwise need many more generations of chain reaction, though still small compared to the total number of nuclei in

11970-407: The risk of its escaping to the environment. Ontario Power Generation 's "Tritium Removal Facility" is capable of processing up to 2,500 tonnes (2,500 long tons; 2,800 short tons) of heavy water a year, and it separates out about 2.5 kg (5.5 lb) of tritium, making it available for other uses. CANDU reactors typically produce 130 grams (4.6 oz) of tritium per year, which is recovered at

12084-780: The service's land combat power. U.S. Army infantry are generally equipped with the M4 carbine and M249 light machine gun , which will be replaced by the XM7 rifle and XM250 . Infantry is a core part of the Army's Brigade Combat Teams . The most numerous variant, the Infantry Brigade Combat Team, comprises light infantry battalions who fight on foot. Infantry Brigade Combat Teams of the 82nd Airborne Division are air assault capable, with infantry soldiers being transported by U.S. Army Aviation UH-60 Black Hawk and CH-47 Chinook helicopters. Infantry Brigade Combat Teams of

12198-442: The skin), but it can be a radiation hazard if inhaled, ingested via food or water, or absorbed through the skin. Organisms can take up H HO, as they would H 2 O. Plants convert H HO into organically bound tritium (OBT), and are consumed by animals. H HO is retained in humans for around 12 days, with a small portion of it remaining in the body. Tritium can be passed along the food chain as one organism feeds on another, though

12312-485: The slide and barrel are coated in a black nitride finish, except for a newer FDE model that has a cerakote FDE slide and black nitride barrel. APX A1s, on the other hand, use Beretta's "Aqua Tech Shield" finish that they first used on their shotguns, followed with a Bruniton coat on the slides. Similar to Beretta's 92 and PX4-series pistols, when the APX A0's trigger is pulled, the top of the striker block safety extends from

12426-578: The top of the pistol. This serves as a visual indicator to the user that this safety is working properly and has been disengaged. The APX A1 has an optics plate instead of this feature. Unlike a number of striker-fired pistols, such as the Glock , which have to have the trigger pulled during take down, the APX has a striker deactivation button that can be pushed to deactivate the striker, thus preventing accidental discharge, which other striker-fired pistols can suffer due to user negligence during disassembly. There

12540-433: The tritium from the body. Increasing sweating, urination or breathing can help the body expel water and thereby the tritium contained in it. However, care should be taken that neither dehydration nor a depletion of the body's electrolytes results, as the health consequences of those things (particularly in the short term) can be more severe than those of tritium exposure. Tritium has leaked from 48 of 65 nuclear sites in

12654-556: The tritium produced in the moderator/coolant of its reactors but due to the dual use nature of tritium and the Indian nuclear bomb program, less information about this is publicly available than for Canada. Tritium is an uncommon product of the nuclear fission of uranium-235 , plutonium-239 , and uranium-233 , with a production of about one atom per 10 fissions. The main pathways of tritium production include ternary fission . The release or recovery of tritium needs to be considered in

12768-506: The world's largest air-transportable X-band radar. The Ground-Based Midcourse Defense is an anti-ballistic missile system operated by Army Space and Missile Defense Command to defend the United States homeland against an intercontinental ballistic missile attack. Major Air Defense Artillery units include the 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command and Army Space and Missile Defense Command's 100th Missile Defense Brigade . Air Defense Artillery has an extremely close relationship with

12882-459: Was a very limited production model, but is significant because it was effectively the basis for the APX A1 line. As of January 2024, Beretta still manufactures the first generation APX to fulfill existing contracts with military and police agencies, though only the A1 models are available on the civilian market. In May 2022, Beretta announced the APX A1, an ergonomically improved standard APX designed by Giovanni Prandini. The two main differences in

12996-400: Was produced in the United States from 1955 to 1996. Since it continually decays into helium-3, the total amount remaining was about 75 kg (165 lb) at the time of the report, and about 16 kg (35 lb) as of 2023. Tritium production was resumed with irradiation of rods containing lithium (replacing the usual control rods containing boron , cadmium , or hafnium ), at

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