Underwater robots are still surveying the Kursk
Radiation tests in the waters around the Kursk nuclear submarine have proved normal, clearing the way for the first teams of divers to begin their perilous task of salvaging the wreck.
The tests were carried out by an underwater robot launched from the Norwegian support ship Mayo, which took up position on Sunday above the wrecked submarine in the Barents Sea.
Twenty-five British and Russian divers on board the Mayo are now preparing for the operation's next phase - attempting to cut off the badly-damaged front section, again using underwater robots.
Experts fear unexploded weapons pose a threat
That is expected to begin on Thursday.
No unexploded torpedoes have been found in the section, said the Russian vice-admiral in charge of the operation, Mikhail Motsak, who is on board one of the Russia destroyers at the scene.
The underwater robots are being used to clear away silt from around the wreck, officials say.
If the operation to sever the front succeeds, holes will be then cut in the remaining sections of the hull.
Huge steel cables will later be locked into position to haul the crippled vessel from the seabed and back into port. At least two months' work is expected before the submarine is ready for lifting.
The operation is one of the most ambitious salvage missions ever attempted, and environmentalists are warning that the Kursk's nuclear reactors and weapons systems could pose major hazards.
Fears of future radioactive contamination of the Barents Sea are among the reasons for raising the wreck.
But some experts warn that the very act of moving it could trigger a catastrophic failure in the two reactors.
Click here to see how the Kursk will be raised
The submarine, which sank in August with the loss of all 118 crew, is lying on the sea bed under 356 feet (100m) of water.
Russian officials believe the disaster was caused by a torpedo which exploded.
But they say they remain unsure whether it was caused by a malfunction - the theory favoured by most outside experts - or a collision.
The Mayo
President Vladimir Putin promised bereaved relatives that the Kursk would be raised this year.
Cutting front section
The actual lifting of the Kursk is scheduled for around 15 September.
If the plan succeeds, the Kursk will be towed to a specially-prepared dock at the Northern Fleet's base in Murmansk on 20 September.
Russian divers have been practising for their part in the operation. Some of the men are already familiar with the Kursk, having taken part in the failed rescue mission last August.
Eight vessels - including one bearing journalists - are now at the site of the tragedy.
Several foreign "underwater objects" had also been spotted from the air trying to approach the Kursk, said senior naval officials quoted by the Russian Interfax news agency.
The head of Russian naval aviation, Ivan Fedin, would not identify where the "objects" came from.
He said they had been pointed out to Russian Navy ships, which drove them out, Interfax said.
-- Anonymous, July 17, 2001