Chernobyl Disaster

This question refers to the meltdown of the Chernobyl reactor in 1986 near Pripyat, Ukraine, in the then Soviet Union. Chernobyl quickly became a transnational and international tragedy as it effected millions within and outside the Soviet Union. It was specifically global as radioactive materials were detected virtually throughout the globe traceable to the Chernobyl reactor, As of September 2014, neighboring countries such as Belarus continue to suffer from radiation exposure from the tragedy,

Ukraine and Belarus

Ukraine!

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The crew of the power station was doing a test and one of the cooling pumps shut down too quickly causing the reactor to overheat and (with the building of pressure in the reactor) exploded. This cause massive amounts of radioactive materials to be launched into the atmosphere. Pripyat, a city near the reactor, had a population of 50,000 people, all of whom were evacuated to a town 30 km away.

Makarov

Most are made of plastic of some sort. Much like children's inflatable swimming pools or beach balls, only a thicker material.

Wasn't it punishment enough to die by radiation poisoning? All the operators, technicians, and supervisors there that night got lethal doses. Now the engineers that designed such an unstable unsafe reactor, and the bureaucrats that insisted on meeting schedule and skipping important tests to meet schedule, something could be done to them...

The disaster at Chernobyl led to the evacuation of people from the area due to dangerous radioactivity readings. Chernobyl is now an abandoned City and the wildlife around the area collect high levels of radioactive particles.

You can only say, 23 years later, I-131's radioactivity almost decreases to 1/8 of original radioactivity.

No. Chernobyl is still contaminated with nuclear radiation, making this city unsafe to live in.

In 1986, a failed test led to its reactor being shutdown. This caused a large explosion that sent out harmful levels of radiation throughout the community. Everyone who lived in Chernobyl was forced to immediately evacuate the area with no possible return.

I don't know of one specifically, there was still underground nuclear testing at the time so there might have been several that year. If you are thinking of the reactor explosion at Chernobyl that year, that was not a nuclear explosion, just a large steam explosion when the coolant water flash vaporized blowing the roof off the reactor. Once the graphite moderator in the core was exposed to air it caught fire, this was the worst part of the disaster as burning graphite is nearly impossible to put out and the smoke was carrying all kinds of radioactive material from deep in the core.

Ukraine. At the time of the disaster, it was in the Soviet Union.

noone can really answer. or sayy

Other countries were concerned about the Chernobyl disaster due to the release of radioactive materials into the atmosphere, which posed a significant health risk beyond Ukraine's borders. Contaminated air and fallout spread across Europe, leading to fears of radiation exposure and long-term ecological damage. Additionally, the incident highlighted deficiencies in nuclear safety protocols and raised questions about the reliability of Soviet-era technology, prompting broader discussions about nuclear energy regulation and safety worldwide.

The radioactive fallout from the Chernobyl accident contaminated the environment, leading to the uptake of radioactive isotopes, particularly cesium-137 and strontium-90, by plants in the affected areas. Herbivores, such as deer and cattle, consumed these contaminated plants, accumulating radiation in their tissues. Predators, including wolves and birds of prey, then consumed these herbivores, further concentrating the radioactive materials as they moved up the food web. This bioaccumulation has had lasting effects on wildlife health and ecosystem dynamics in the region.

The area affected by radiation near Chernobyl in 1986 primarily encompassed a 30-kilometer radius around the reactor, known as the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. This roughly circular region covered approximately 1,600 square kilometers. The radioactive contamination extended beyond this zone, impacting parts of Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine in a more irregular shape influenced by wind patterns at the time of the accident. The most heavily contaminated areas included the city of Pripyat and surrounding towns.

On the 26th of April, 1986 there was a nuclear accident at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine.

The exact time of the accident was recorded as 1:23:44am when a power surge caused a steam explosion which significantly damaged reactor number four. This initial damage caused a second explosion which had two potential causes:

1. The ignition of a mixture of hydrogen gas and air
2. A criticality incident or run away fission event

Current evidence suggests that the latter event occured which ultimately destroyed the roof of the reactor causing the release of radioactive material into the environment.

Mankind is not ready to use nuclear power. We must dismantle the reactors that are in use and perfect other safe methods of energy. Otherwise we are doomed to repeat Chernobyl again and again until the earth is laid to waste.

The reactor was incased in a giant improvised concrete coffin. I hear that coffin is failing now and they plan on incasing it in an even bigger one. The fallout cannot be cleaned up.

Kosice are some 700km (435 miles) away from Chernobyl by air. By ground the distance increases to approximately 900 km (560 miles), making it an 12 hour trip.