Touring Chernobyl In 2010

[Mota_boy]

Thanks guys for doing this article. i enjoyed reading it
I myself would really love see and visit that place :P

[MorinSane]

First off, nice pictures. Photojournalism is probably the best way to get more attention on Chernobyl, as it should be. There are still plenty of russian design RBMK's around the world, so it's best that everything that still exists is out in the public.

Secondly, a young woman did one of the first phototours of this area from her motorcycle about 5 years ago. Her exploits are now hosted on
www.kiddofspeed.com. She did two phototours and they are very interesting. She has a couple of others including phototours of areas of Nazi and Mongol invasion, separated by a thousand years but occurring on the same land. Also one of the orange revolution in 2004.

[kernelOfTruth]

There is its called A Thorium Reactor.
http://www.wired.com/science/discove.../2005/07/68045

But since you can't have enriched uranium from it no one wants it.

just start using it already !

the other advantage afaik is that there can be no core meltdown

(and dump all of that "unclean" atomic waste and uranium into space )

*runs and hides*

of course that wouldn't be the "right thing" (with responsibility in mind) to do ...

[DuSTman]

The indisputable fact is that Chernobyl is just as "alive" - as fatally radioactive - today as it was 24 years ago only an hour after the tragic failure.

Indisputable? That's extremely disputable. The estimates I've seen suggest that the majority of released matter was of an isotope with a 10-day half life, which would have mostly decayed to nothing within a single year of the accident.

It's certainly true that you wouldn't want to rub your scrotum on any foliage near the reactor building, but it's a *long* way from the 10-minutes-and-you're-dead levels immediately following the accident.

[NextVoiceUHear]

But Wait, There's More...

Thanks Michael for that great post. The pictures and text are stunning.

Many who have replied to this forum eagerly defend nuclear energy as safe, clean, economical, etc, etc, and etc.

The indisputable fact is that Chernobyl is just as "alive" - as fatally radioactive - today as it was 24 years ago only an hour after the tragic failure.

For those interested, I have posted this shameless link to ongoing news of a nuclear nature.

I suggest that everyone bookmark and read the NRC postings of Nuclear Event Reports for all reactors in the USA. Most are minor, but there are dozens every week. Here they are for
2009 and 2010.

NVUH

[NextVoiceUHear]

There's Yucca Mountain and other facilities for storing waste for many, many years.

While true that Yucca Mountain is "there," the inconvenient truth is that Dear Leader (0bama) has killed the federal Yucca Mountain Project. Here is a video news report on the details.

NVUH

[GreatEmerald]

Much better than fusion, in my opinion.

You meant fission, right?

[Michael]

Also, Michael, is it possible to download all the images in an archive? I'd like to flip through them all, but the back/next links sometimes break (i.e. don't appear at all).

When do the links break for you? Any example. I am not aware of any issues unless its due to the server load with the page just quitting. But no it's not possible to download them at this time for advertisement reasons.

[SheeEttin]

Re nuclear waste: A lot of it can be reprocessed into usable fuel. France does it.
Or, just use a breeder reactor. They produce more fissile material than they consume. (No, I don't know how it works either.)

But what I'd REALLY like to see is fusion. Much better than fusion, in my opinion.

Also, Michael, is it possible to download all the images in an archive? I'd like to flip through them all, but the back/next links sometimes break (i.e. don't appear at all).

[cliff]

Wish they would find a less dangerous power source - too many lives lost. Thou with the current power hungriness of people that ain't gonna happen.

There is its called A Thorium Reactor.
http://www.wired.com/science/discove.../2005/07/68045

But since you can't have enriched uranium from it no one wants it.