Submariners, is a fake radiation leak possible?

The subs do have multiple redundant detection systems on board. In the book it was explained that the Red October did as well. In this case however the man in charge of maintaining and monitoring those systems, the Chief Engineer, Melekin, was part of the conspiracy. So he controlled what the system response would be .

I can't recall if the radiation leak plan was part of the original plan or not, but if it was, they certainly could have brought in some pre-exposed badges if they even used them on the sub.

The main engineer was in on the defection, and he could have rigged the sensors and/or computer software to falsely report the leak.

Radiation leak; a broad term. Radiation from fission and decay of nitrogen-16 are the most significant contributors to radiation levels in the engine room and forward compartment. A small percentage of the radiation produced in the core and the coolant loop will penetrate the shields around the reactor and the compartment it is located in. On American submarines the amount of radiation the crew is exposed to is less than that of from the sun unless they stand near the shield.

The secondary shield around the reactor compartment, if damaged (cracked), could allow more radiation to stream from the reactor compartment into the engine room where the crew works.

Coolant (contaminated by corrosion products, and N-16 from decay of activated oxygen -16) can leak into the secondary steam system or into the ship's atmosphere and increase the crew's exposure.

The crew does routine surveys around the shield, samples the coolant and samples the air for activity on a regular basis. On American submarines, it is the junior enlisted crew members of the reactor laboratories (RL) division that do this.

There would be no way at all to trick the crew into believing there was an increase in the radiation levels through the shield or a coolant leak from the reactor plant unless every personal dosimeter was tampered with, every portable radiac had it's calibration adjusted and every check source used to test the radiacs and the TLD reader (dosimetry anaylizer) was exchanged with one to allow deception. Or, every member of RL division, their division officer, the engineer and the commanding officer were in on it.

I was a member of RL division in the submarine fleet. There is no way anyone could have fooled me or my shipmates into believing there was a coolant leak when there wasn't one. I would have noticed a complete and massive change-out of every piece of equipment on board that monitored coolant activity and radiation levels.

The Russians did things differently.