An international data bank of nuclear explosives would help to determine the source of nuclear materials following a terrorist explosion, argues a Commentary in Nature this week. In "Preparing for the worst," Michael May, Jay Davis and Raymond Jeanloz reason that although the likelihood of a nuclear terrorist attack is uncertain, a database would help in the process of determining where the nuclear explosive came from, who was responsible and what the chances of another explosion were. Such a databank would also deter the criminal transfer of nuclear materials because they would be traceable.

Although several small databases are in existence, they are privately held or incomplete. Recommendations for a comprehensive, validated international data bank are outlined in the Commentary. Features include the avoidance of political bias by conducting analyses in laboratories in different countries, and validation whenever possible by archiving tiny samples of known nuclear materials. The authors recommend maintaining as much transparency as possible while accepting the need for parts of the database to be classified as secrets of political and economic value could be revealed.

The authors conclude that the establishment of such a data bank "would greatly reduce the time between this most terrible of events and the ability to respond to it."