Search for Radio-ACtive Minerals

Series

Series Name

Rhodesian Spotlight

Issue

Issue No.

53

Length of issue (in feet)

956

Stories in this Issue:

1. 1Farming on the Mkushi Block
2. 2Operation Air-Drop
3. 3Parishioners Build Own Church
4. 4The Circus Comes to Town
5. 5Search for Radio-ACtive Minerals

Story

Story No. within this Issue

5 / 5

Summary

Rhodesian Spotlight synopsis: Amateurs as well as Professionals are in search of Radio-active minerals in Rhodesia. These people are by the Rhodesian Branch Office of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority.
Rhodesian Spotlight Commentary - Everyone’s keen to learn about prospecting in Rhodesia these days, and the great thing is to find uranium. Hence the popularity of such schemes as the lectures arranged by the "Rhodesian" Branch Office of the "United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority", on where to look, what to look for, and how to equip yourself. Specimens of Radio-active minerals, different types of Geigercounters ... you can learn all about it here. And the keen types increase their knowledge by visits to the "Geological Survey Department’s Museum". Then armed with a licence they have a go at "digging up a fortune". Week-end prospecting is quite the thing these days; just pack a Geigercounter with the ham sandwiches.
Professionals are very much on the job too with wider experience and more expensive equipment.
But the work of the Authority doesn’t end with lectures because anyone can bring in specimens for expert examination and assay. Some times a radio-active mineral can be identified by its property of glowing yellow under ultra-violet light but quite often further investigation is necessary by placing the specimen inside a lead container and measuring the intensity of the radio-activity.
Behind all this lie the stories of the men who bring the specimens in. Men such as Mr G. C. Cripps and Mr W. Blackmore who spend many tiring week-ends around Umtali hunting for radio-active minerals. One day they decided to prospect the bed of the Mpudzi River and sure enough there it was. Up went a discovery notice before anyone else could come across this promising find - uranium. The specimens sent in were promising and the Authority sent a geologist out to investigate. They showed him the actual area of their discovery. Then he had a look at their diggings where they had exposed more radio-active rock. His investigation confirmed the promise of the find and a mining company took an option on it and started proving work. The core brought up by their drilling looked promising and so a Geiger probe was lowered down the drill-hole to measure radio-activity ... Then development started. And as for Messrs Blackmore and Cripps. Well, they’re at it again.

Keywords

Science and technology; Nuclear energy; Energy resources

Written sources

Movietone boxfile no.1   Used for synopsis

Credits:

Production Co.

Central African Film Unit

This series is held by:

Film Archive

Name

British Film Institute (BFI)

Email

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nonfictioncurators@bfi.org.uk
For commercial/footage reuse enquiries:
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Web

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Phone

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Fax

020 7580 7503

Address

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Notes

The BFI National Archive also preserves the original nitrate film copies of British Movietone News, British Paramount News, Empire News Bulletin, Gaumont British News, Gaumont Graphic, Gaumont Sound News and Universal News (the World War II years are covered by the Imperial War Museum).

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