The Scientific War on Terror - click to download PDF(275K): download requires Adobe Acrobat

The events of 11 September 2001 took the world by surprise when two civilian aircraft were deliberately flown into New York’s Twin Towers. Terrorists also attempted to fly a third plane into the Pentagon.

The shocking images of the impact, of falling bodies, and the subsequent collapse of the towers were beamed around the world as the event unfolded. The death toll was over 3000.

In the years following this act of terrorism, there have been others such as the Bali bombings on 12 October 2002, where 202 people were killed, including 88 Australians, and three New Zealanders; and the London Underground suicide Bombings on 7 July 2005 where 37 people were killed and over 700 injured.

This Gamma examines how, in response to these new threats, the technologies needed to prevent, investigate and analyse acts of terrorism and strengthen homeland security has burgeoned in the last five years.