Andy Oppenheimer AIExpE MIABTI (born 1953) is a UK-based expert and consultant in counter-terrorism and

CBRNE Chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defence (CBRN defence) are protective measures taken in situations in which chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear warfare (including terrorism) hazards may be present. CBRN defence consist ...

(chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear weapons and explosives). Since 2001 he has written articles, edited journals, and presented at conferences and professional seminars worldwide.
He has been editor of several journals on defence and security, including Chemical, Biological & Nuclear Warfare (CBNW) from 2009, Jane's Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Defence and NBC International from 2006 to 2008, and was co-editor of Jane's World Armies from 2002 to 2004. He has served as a CBRN consultant for Jane's Consultancy Group and

Oxford Analytica Oxford Analytica is an international consulting firm providing strategic analysis of world events. It was founded in 1975 by David Young, an American employee of the National Security Council during the Nixon administration. Clients of Oxford A ...

Personal life

Born in 1953, Oppenheimer grew up in Leeds and Liverpool and graduated from Liverpool University in 1974. He then moved to London and worked in popular science and academic publishing for over 20 years before becoming an author and subject matter expert in defence and counterterrorism in 2001. He is not related to J. Robert Oppenheimer.

Professional career

During the 1980s and 1990s, Oppenheimer conducted research into nuclear weapons and the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

along with research into the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various paramilitary organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dedicated to irredentism through Irish republicanism, the belief tha ...

and

improvised explosive device An improvised explosive device (IED) is a bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action. It may be constructed of conventional military explosives, such as an artillery shell, attached to a detonating mechan ...

s. He became a Member of the International Association of Bomb Technicians (IABTI) in 2008 and an Associate Member of the UK Institute of Explosives Engineers in 2011.
From 2012 to 2015 he was a Course Contributor to the University of St. Andrews Certificate of Terrorism Studies, conducted by the

Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence The Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence (CSTPV), also known as the Handa Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence, is a research centre at the School of International Relations at the University of St. Andrews ...

, writing the CBRN Weapons in Terrorism Course Module in 2012 and the IEDs: Threats & Countermeasures Course Module in 2013. He has written for defence journals including ''Military Technology'', ''CBNW'', ''

RUSI Journal The ''RUSI Journal'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering international security and defence strategy. It was established in 1857 as the ''Royal United Services Institution Journal'', obtaining its current title in 1972. The journal is pu ...

'', ''Strategic Intelligence Review'', ''Counter-IED Report'', ''Langley Intelligence Group Network'', ''Police Oracle'', ''Explosives Engineering'', and several Jane's Information Group (now Jane's IHS) publications from 2002 to 2006, including ''Jane's Terrorism & Security Monitor'' and ''Jane's Intelligence Digest''. He was Editor of ''Jane's Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Defence'' from 2006 to 2008.
Oppenheimer has made TV appearances and radio broadcasts as an expert on terrorism and CBRNE and acts as a consultant for films and documentaries, including ''Mountbatten: Death of a Royal'' (History Channel, RTE), ''Gaddafi and the IRA'' (ITV), ''The World's Deadliest Arms Race'' (ITV), ''Terror Attacks That Shocked Britain'' (Current TV, Sky), and ''Spooks'' (BBC1).

Published work

His first book IRA: The Bombs and the Bullets – A History of Deadly Ingenuity (

Irish Academic Press Irish Academic Press is an independent Irish publishing house that was established in 1974, with a focus on Irish history, politics, literature and the arts. History Irish Academic Press was founded by Frank Cass in 1974 and, following his deat ...

, 2008) covers 150 years of strategic, tactical, and operational details, with penetrating analysis of the IRA's mission, doctrine, targeting, and acquisition of weapons and explosives.
He has since publishe
two science-fiction novels
on Amazon – Fields of Orion (I): An Odyssey (2019) and Fields of Orion (II) The Mission (2020) - with the strong themes of

bomb disposal Bomb disposal is an explosives engineering profession using the process by which hazardous Explosive device, explosive devices are rendered safe. ''Bomb disposal'' is an all-encompassing term to describe the separate, but interrelated functi ...

, heroism,

terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

, and

first contact First contact may refer to: *First contact (astronomy), the moment in astronomical transit when the apparent positions of the two bodies first touch *First contact (anthropology), the first meeting of two cultures previously unaware of one another ...

.
In 2021 he publishe
''Stars of Orion: An Astronomy Special''
a collection of photos and stories of the Constellation Orion by 45 amateur and professional astronomers. Hosting the book as Orion the Hunter, he draws on experience working for ''Omni'' (magazine) from 1978 to 1983 with Patrick Moore and from a love of

cosmology Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount (lexicographer), Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', and in 1731 taken up in ...

and

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical co ...

Music

Andy Oppenheimer is also a singer-songwriter of electronic pop music since the early 1980s, when he formed Oppenheimer Analysis (OA) with producer Martin Lloyd (aka Analysis, d. 2013). They released the tape-only album ''New Mexico'' in 1982, which grew to have a following with the emerging

cassette culture The cassette culture (also known as the tape/cassette scene or cassette underground) refers to the practices associated with amateur production and distribution of music and sound art on compact cassette that emerged in the mid-1970s. The cassett ...

. In 2005 Oppenheimer Analysis re-formed and an EP of early material was the first release by the New York-based

Minimal Wave Minimal wave is a broad classification of music that comprises obscure, atypical examples of genres such as new wave, stripped-down electronic or synthesizer music, synth-pop, post-punk, and coldwave. Most of the music tends to focus on elect ...

label. 'The Devil's Dancers' is a hallmark electro track played in clubs and online DJ playlists.
Oppenheimer also wrote and sang from 2010 to 2015 as Touching the Void with veteran producer Mark Warner (of

Rossetti's Compass Rossetti's Compass is a synthpop and EBM music band created in November 2010 by the British musician Mark Warner. It was conceived from a desire to explore different directions in the electro musical sphere, from pure synthpop to dark and men ...

and formerly of the 1980s band Sudeten Creche) and released an album, ''Love, Longing and Loss'' in 2015. He continues to create songs as Oppenheimer MkII with producer Mahk Rumbae (of experimental electronic ban
Mitra Mitra
. Oppenheimer MkII released their first album ''The Presence of the Abnormal'' in 2012 and an EP, ''Out in the Field'', on Northern Irish record labe
TONN Recordings
in 2021.
Oppenheimer has also painted pictures from childhood and his surrealist works were featured in several exhibitions in London in the late 1990s. His main pastime is

archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

, shooting at clubs in London and Brighton.

Books

* 2008: IRA: The Bombs and the Bullets * 2019: Fields of Orion: An Odyssey * 2020: Fields of Orion (II) The Mission * 2021: The Hunter’s Story by Orion * 2021: Stars of Orion: An Astronomy Special

Discography

A full list of Andy Oppenheimer's music releases can be viewed on Discogs (see external links)

Albums

* 1982: ''New Mexico'' as Oppenheimer Analysis * 2013: ''The Presence of the Abnormal'' as Oppenheimer MkII * 2015: Love, Longing and Loss as Touching the Void

EPs

* 2005: ''Der Wissenschaftler'' as Oppenheimer Analysis * 2005: ''Oppenheimer Analysis'' as Oppenheimer Analysis * 2015: ''Line of Sight EP'' as Oppenheimer MkII * 2021: ''Out in the Field'' as Oppenheimer MkII

Singles

* 2010: ''Oppenheimer Analysis'' as Oppenheimer Analysis * 2011: ''Science'' / ''Washington'' as Oppenheimer Analysis * 2012: ''Parallel Lives'' as Touching the Void * 2014: ''Obsession'' / ''In this Together'' as Touching the Void