Item #: SCP-118
Object Class: Euclid
Special Containment Procedures: Due to the number and distribution of SCP-118, containment of every specimen is impossible. Known SCP-118 Red Zones are to be closed off to all civilian marine vessels and divers under the guise of a military presence or other plausible cover story. Contacts in navies known to operate near SCP-118 Red Zones are to be utilized in order to minimize the passage of military vessels through the Red Zones. If any area within the Red Zone has a depth of less than 1500 meters, the restriction is to be applied to aircraft as well. All human activity in surrounding Yellow Zones is to be monitored, and any non-military vessels or individuals approaching the Red Zone are to be turned away. In the Red and Yellow Zones, protocol TOXIC HARVEST is to be followed to ensure the removal of devices generated by SCP-118. Furthermore, protocol CELL WATCH is to be followed to ensure the early detection of any emerging Red Zones.
Samples of SCP-118 can be stored using standard containment procedures for non-virulent anomalous microbes.
Description: SCP-118 is a species of ocean-dwelling protista that is capable of assembling functional, self initiating, nuclear devices from materials present in ocean water. While SCP-118 is unknown and hence has not been classified by the scientific community, specimens resemble protists of the phylum Euglenophyta but have significantly increased levels of movement speed, nutrient storage capability and resistance to alpha radiation. Specimens of SCP-118 have been found in all of the world's oceans and seas.
When in a survivable salt water environment, specimens of SCP-118 will seek out materials including but not limited to iron, silver, copper, carbon, TNT, and uranium isotopes. When SCP-118 has located a material of interest the material is absorbed into the cell using a method dependent on the size of the material. Single atoms and molecules (mostly substances that are dissolved in the water) are passed through the cellular membrane through specialized protein pumps. Larger particles smaller than the cell itself are ingested through phagocytosis. Larger pieces will have particles torn off through an unknown mechanism, which are then absorbed using the first two methods. This "mining" occurs even in solid and hard substances, such as metal ingots.
Upon reaching a threshold of absorbed materials, specimens of SCP-118 will move towards an "assembly area" on the bottom of the body of the water they are present in and will contribute to the assembly of a nuclear device. The nuclear devices assembled are gun-type fission devices using Uranium-235 as their fissile material. Observation of devices in the process of being assembled show that the process starts with the assembly of a metallic rounded cylindrical casing for the device, followed by the creation of two sub-critical masses of uranium and the conventional explosives to propel them into each other. The mechanism by which SCP-118 enriches harvested uranium is currently unknown. (See Addendum 4). The device is then finished with the assembly of a Uranium-238 tamper where the two uranium masses will collide and the assembly of a trigger mechanism. SCP-118 appears to assemble the necessary components by adding minuscule amounts of material to an (initially) tiny material "seed". Differing atoms and molecules can be added to the same component and assembled components are not necessarily homogeneous. It is currently unknown whether SCP-118 builds on the seed atom by atom or by adding very small sub-micrometer fragments. The mechanism by which SCP-118 attaches new material to the seed seamlessly is unknown. The assembly time depends on the size of the device being assembled, water conditions and mineral availability but observations suggest that 300 days for a medium size device can be considered average.
