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No, nuclear waste and radioactive waste are not supposed to be synonymous, even if the media attempts to show them in the same light. See these from the NRC's website. Radioactive waste is a grouping containing low level waste, something which could be harmful to humans more in theory (as in contaminated shoe covers), and high level waste, which (is nuclear waste, reprocessed waste, and other things) will easily kill you. Nuclear waste is a sub-group of Radioactive waste. So a truck spill of radioactive waste on a high-way might just be spent latex doctors gloves.

= Low-Level Waste = Low-level waste includes items that have become contaminated with radioactive material or have become radioactive through exposure to neutron radiation. This waste typically consists of contaminated protective shoe covers and clothing, wiping rags, mops, filters, reactor water treatment residues, equipments and tools, luminous dials, medical tubes, swabs, injection needles, syringes, and laboratory animal carcasses and tissues. The radioactivity can range from just above background levels found in nature to very highly radioactive in certain cases such as parts from inside the reactor vessel in a nuclear power plant. Low-level waste is typically stored on-site by licensees, either until it has decayed away and can be disposed of as ordinary trash, or until amounts are large enough for shipment to a low-level waste disposal site in containers approved by the Department of Transportation.

= High-Level Waste = High-level radioactive wastes are the highly radioactive materials produced as a byproduct of the reactions that occur inside nuclear reactors. High-level wastes take one of two forms: * Spent (used) reactor fuel when it is accepted for disposal * Waste materials remaining after spent fuel is reprocessed Spent nuclear fuel is used fuel from a reactor that is no longer efficient in creating electricity, because its fission process has slowed. However, it is still thermally hot, highly radioactive, and potentially harmful. Until a permanent disposal repository for spent nuclear fuel is built, licensees must safely store this fuel at their reactors. Reprocessing extracts isotopes from spent fuel that can be used again as reactor fuel. Commercial reprocessing is currently not practiced in the United States, although it has been allowed in the past. However, significant quantities of high-level radioactive waste are produced by the defense reprocessing programs at Department of Energy (DOE) facilities, such as Hanford, Washington, and Savannah River, South Carolina, and by commercial reprocessing operations at West Valley, New York. These wastes, which are generally managed by DOE, are not regulated by NRC. However they must be included in any high-level radioactive waste disposal plans, along with all high-level waste from spent reactor fuel. Because of their highly radioactive fission products, high-level waste and spent fuel must be handled and stored with care. Since the only way radioactive waste finally becomes harmless is through decay, which for high-level wastes can take hundreds of thousands of years, the wastes must be stored and finally disposed of in a way that provides adequate protection of the public for a very long time.

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How does radiation spread once a nuclear bomb detonates?

prompt radiation is emitted at the time of detonation and propagates in straight lines from the fireball in all directions; prompt radiation is neutrons, gamma rays, x-rays, UV, light, IR, with smaller amounts of microwave and radio wavesdelayed radiation is mostly in the form of fallout and spreads by the winds (in an atmospheric detonation), water currents (in an underwater detonation), or by following the earth's magnetic field lines (in a detonation in space; delayed radiation is mostly alpha, beta, and gamma rays


Which type of nuclear radiation travels the fastest?

All electromagnetic radiation travels at the same speed. We usually call it "the speed of light" but it's the same for all other forms of electromagnetic waves.


Which one is not a type of nuclear radiation.. Alpha particles Beta particle Neutron or Visible light?

All of them - alpha - beta - neutron - visible light - are examples of nuclear radiation.


What are the health consequences of radioactive fallout particles?

Exposure to radioactive fallout particles can lead to various health consequences, including an increased risk of cancer, genetic mutations, radiation sickness, and long-term damage to organs and tissues. It is important to limit exposure to minimize these risks.


Are nuclear weapons harmful to the ozone?

Nuclear weapons do not directly harm the ozone layer. The main environmental impact of nuclear weapons comes from the radioactive fallout and long-term radiation effects on the environment and living organisms, rather than ozone depletion.

Related Questions

What is neclear fallout?

Nuclear fallout is where, in this case countries, have a fallout and basiclly launch nuclear weapons at eachother.


What is the relationship between nuclear radiation and nuclear fallout?

fallout emits nuclear radiation, but lots of other things do too.fallout is particulates from dust size to baseball size, nuclear radiation is a mix of electromagnetic radiation and high speed subatomic particles.


Why is fallout dangerous?

Fallout caused by nuclear bombs can cause radiation burns and genetic mutations.


Is a bomb shelter and a fallout shelter the same thing?

No. A bomb shelter is for overhead bombs dropped from planes, etc. A fallout shelter is referencing a nuclear fallout, which would mean it would be safe from radiation.


What is deffination of fallout?

Well the word "fallout" basically just means aftermath. In the case of the game, it is called the Fallout franchise because it is the aftermath of the nuclear explosions. The word "fallout" is also commonly used when talking about nuclear fallout, which is the radiation and such.


What is fallout-hazard?

A fallout hazard is when there is a risk of a nuclear missile devastating a continent and turning it into a wasteland full of deadly radiation


What type of radiation emitted during a nuclear detonation and from fallout results in whole body exposure?

Gamma radiation


What is emitted mainly during nuclear detonation does not present a fallout hazard?

Neutron Radiation


Are nukes radioactive?

Yes, nuclear weapons or nuclear reactors produce radiation as a byproduct of nuclear reactions. This radiation can be in the form of gamma rays, alpha particles, or beta particles. Therefore, exposure to nuclear weapons or the fallout from a nuclear explosion can result in harmful levels of radiation.


What is nulcear fallout?

it is what happents after a nuclear explosion usually involving radiation poisoning to the surounding area


What year does fallout take place in?

Fallout is the residual radiation that falls out of the atmosphere after a nuclear explosion .If you mean the video game it takes place in 2077


What is the radiation of a nuclear bomb?

The radiation from a nuclear bomb includes gamma rays, neutrons, and residual radioactive fallout. Gamma rays are high-energy electromagnetic radiation, while neutrons are subatomic particles that can induce nuclear reactions in surrounding materials, releasing additional radiation. Fallout consists of radioactive particles and debris from the explosion that can spread over large areas, causing long-term contamination.