Chernobyl Disaster. 21 years ago today (4/26)

[Zambini]

On April 26, 1986, at 1:23 A.M., an accident occurred during a test of a turbine generator on the Unit 4 reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power station in the Ukraine. The accident resulted from the improper withdrawal of control rods and the inactivation of important safety systems—in violation of the operating rules—which caused the reactor to overheat, explode, and catch fire.

Chernobyl: Definition and Much More from Answers.com



I know it sounds bad, but I find it ironic that I'm just starting to play S.T.A.L.K.E.R. - Shadows of Chernobyl a lot more this week.


Have any of you been directly affected by the explosion at Chernobyl?

[garetjax]

Originally Posted by Zambini

I know it sounds bad, but I find it ironic that I'm just starting to play S.T.A.L.K.E.R. - Shadows of Chernobyl a lot more this week.

Yes, very weird...

Originally Posted by Zambini

Have any of you been directly affected by the explosion at Chernobyl?

I have not, no. But I am sure that the fallout of the Chernobyl explosion has affected people all over the world at the time of the meltdown. I think I read something where the fallout of the Chernobyl accident was detected in the US, Canada and Azores within hours of the explosion.

[Carl Martin]

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, a friend of mine (MD, PhD) was part of an international team of scientists who surveyed the site at the request of the Russian government. He says that it will be decades and possibly several generations before we really know what the full effects are. (Scaley, fleshy headed mutants!)

In addition to the problems it has caused in Russia, the Ukraine and neighboring countries, that disaster coupled with Three Mile Island has, unfortunately, caused such a degree of fear that our own nuclear power program has stagnated and probably won't recover for another generation. That's too bad, since we have an economical, safe source of power at hand that remains, largely, untapped while we continue to be enslaved by the escalating cost of petroleum.

[Capper]

For those wanting to see some incredible stuff....I'd recommend Chernobyl Heart....a documentary about children born in the contamination zone.

I've also seen a major paper written that talks about the sarcophagus they built around the reactor, and that its operational life is only 20-25 years, after which it will start to break down. If water hits whats left of the reactor, or the radioactive material reaches the water table, they say it will make the original disaster look like it was nothing.

[Jokerswild]

There's lots of these little guy's running around after Chernobyl.

[Death_blooms]

Originally Posted by Jokerswild

There's lots of these little guy's running around after Chernobyl.

I think we have seen enough of the baby hobits on this forum thankyou

[Quakindude]

Originally Posted by Carl Martin

That's too bad, since we have an economical, safe source of power at hand that remains, largely, untapped while we continue to be enslaved by the escalating cost of petroleum.

Originally Posted by Capper

For those wanting to see some incredible stuff....I'd recommend Chernobyl Heart....a documentary about children born in the contamination zone.

I've also seen a major paper written that talks about the sarcophagus they built around the reactor, and that its operational life is only 20-25 years, after which it will start to break down. If water hits whats left of the reactor, or the radioactive material reaches the water table, they say it will make the original disaster look like it was nothing.

Here's my take on it. I'd rather ride horses, burn wood for heat and tend my own fields before depending on nuclear reactions for our power needs.

The incidents at 3-Mile and Chernobyl are such small percentages when compared to the over-all picture of how many reactors are actually going, but with our inability to properly handle and dispose of the by products and incidents, it just scares the crap out of me that these things are even being considered on a larger scale. The concrete they used at Chernobyl was less then ideal simply due to the limited amount of exposure time a single person could be subjected to. Not only that, the attrition rate for those that worked on Chernobyl is unacceptable.

I'm a firm believer that when a government suffers this type of incident, they only report a fraction of the actual dangers associated with the problem. I've no doubt the situation at Chernobyl is 100 times worse than any of us know.

[Capper]

I'm a firm believer that when a government suffers this type of incident, they only report a fraction of the actual dangers associated with the problem. I've no doubt the situation at Chernobyl is 100 times worse than any of us know.

The problem is, they don't KNOW what all the dangers/long term effects are....

[Jokerswild]

They have a fair idea because of the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki but is the radiation from a reactor identical to a bomb from WWII?

[MantaBase]

Originally Posted by Jokerswild

They have a fair idea because of the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki but is the radiation from a reactor identical to a bomb from WWII?

Yes.

The exposure is the difference. You have alpha, beta and gamma emitters. I don't know much about beta, but alpha (emitters) need to be ingested to do damage in humans. Gamma is basically a high energy x-ray. Both can be lethal in high doses.

Of course, so can UV.