Another Day, Another Nuclear Accident! By Brian Simpson

     Just in case you have not heard, there was a nuclear accident in Russia, but, nothing to worry about, have a vodka and toast President Putin, while eating raw potatoes:
  https://time.com/5649826/russia-nuclear-accident/?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=social-share-article&utm_content=20190812&fbclid=IwAR1NSO2jzLBH6rAWFSBVqFB3J-0SKY6OdlXKQ8hd18J7QvTa5391hDBiE1w
  https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/08/09/radiation-spike-fuels-scramble-for-iodine-in-russian-cities-near-explosion-a66785

“The failed missile test that ended in an explosion killing five scientists last week on Russia’s White Sea involved a small nuclear reactor, according to a top official at the institute where they worked. The institute is working on small-scale power sources that use “radioactive materials, including fissile and radioisotope materials” for the Defense Ministry and civilian uses, Vyacheslav Soloviev, scientific director of the institute, said in a video shown by local TV. The men, who will be buried Monday, were national heroes and the “elite of the Russian Federal Nuclear Center,” institute Director Valentin Kostyukov said in the video, which was also posted on an official website in Sarov, a high-security city devoted to nuclear research less than 400 kilometers (250 miles) east of Moscow. The blast occurred Aug. 8 during a test of a missile that used “isotope power sources” on an offshore platform in the Arkhangelsk region, close to the Arctic Circle, Russia’s state nuclear company Rosatom said over the weekend. The Defense Ministry initially reported two were killed in the accident, which it said involved testing of a liquid-fueled missile engine. The ministry didn’t mention the nuclear element. It caused a brief spike in radiation in the nearby port city of Severodvinsk, according to a statement on the local administration’s website that was later removed. The Russian military said radiation levels were normal but disclosed few details about the incident. News of the explosion set off in nearby cities and towns a run on iodine, which is believed to help prevent the thyroid gland from absorbing radiation. Norway said it had stepped up radiation monitoring after the incident but hadn’t detected anything abnormal. Southerly winds and the large distance between the border and the explosion make it unlikely that Finland will detect any radiation, Pia Vesterbacka, director at Finland’s Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority, said by phone Monday. The authority hasn’t checked its air filters since the incident but expects to have results this week, she added.”

     But that is the problem, for the nuclear demon has been released from its prison, and now there is no reason why an even larger reactor could not blow up. We have been told that everyone got their reactors together after Chernobyl, but this explosion indicates that this is not so. In principle, reactors could freak out at any moment and kill us all. Yikes!

 

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Friday, 29 March 2024

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