Newsletter XXXVII 2022 |
September 17 to 23
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Nuclear Power Accidents
This PDF file contains a list of known incidents from the various areas of the civil and military nuclear industry. Some of this information only came to the public in a roundabout way...
Excerpt for this month:
September 1, 1982 (INES 5) Chernobyl, USSR
September 3, 2017 (6. Atomic Bomb Test) Punggye-ri, PRK
September 5, 2008 (INES 1-3) Ascó, ESP
September 9, 2016 (5. Atomic Bomb Test) Punggye-ri, PRK
September 11, 1979 (INES 4 NAMS 3,4) nuclear factory Sellafield, GBR
September 11, 1957 (INES 5 NAMS 2,3) nuclear factory Rocky Flats, USA
September 13, 1987 (INES 5) Goiânia, BRA
September 18, 1980 (Rocket fuel explosion) Damascus, USA
September 22, 1980 (INES 3 NAMS 1,6) nuclear factory Sellafield, GBR
September 23, 1983 (INES 4) nuclear center Constituentes, ARG
September 24, 1977 (INES 3) Davis Besse, USA
September 26, 2013 (INES 2) Institute of Energy Caps, NLD
September 26, 1973 (INES 4 NAMS 2) nuclear factory Sellafield, GBR
September 29, 1957 (INES 6 NAMS 7,3) nuclear factory Mayak, USSR
September 30, 1999 (INES 4) nuclear factory Tokaimura, JPN
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We are looking for current information. If you can help, please send a message to: nuclear-world@reaktorpleite.de
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23 September
Fridays for Future | demonstrations worldwide
"Fridays for Future" tens of thousands demonstrate for the climate
The "Fridays for Future" movement had called the global climate strike for today - and numerous people in more than 250 cities followed the call. In Berlin alone, 30.000 took to the streets for climate justice.
[...]
People also took to the streets in many other countries - for example in New Zealand, Indonesia or the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was the organization's eleventh call for a global protest since its inception in 2018. The "Fridays for Future" activist Luisa Neubauer called out at the rally in Berlin: "Anyone who thinks that there is no way out, only despair remains. If you know that there is another way, you can get started and act. We have the knowledge, so let's get started." ...
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Protests against the end of Doel 3 and against Belgium's nuclear phase-out
In front of the Doel nuclear power plant near Antwerp, dozens of supporters of nuclear power gathered on Friday to protest against Belgium's legally agreed nuclear phase-out and also against the definitive shutdown of the Doel 3 nuclear reactor this Friday (September 23). Among the protesters were politicians and employees of the power plant operator Engie.
[...]
But Peter Moens, the director of the Doel nuclear power plant - a pro-nuclear energy proponent - indicated that there was no turning back for Doel 3: "We are not doing anything here that can jeopardize safety". it is too risky to leave this 40-year-old reactor connected to the grid, nuclear phase-out or not...
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highway solar | Photovoltaics | Call for tender
Solar roofs over motorways: German pilot project will start soon
A section of the roadway on the A81 motorway is to be covered with solar modules as a test. Construction is scheduled to begin this year, says Autobahn GmbH.
Motorways could be used to generate electricity with the help of solar panels. A pilot project, in which a section of the autobahn in Germany is to be covered with photovoltaic modules, is now taking shape. The foundations for the building would be laid this year, and the steel construction, including the photovoltaic elements, should be erected in the first and second quarters of 2023...
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Fridays For Future | Climate protection | economic policy
Climate strike September 2022
Climate protection is good economic policy
Fridays For Future are demanding 100 billion euros for climate protection. The money is primarily intended to accelerate the expansion of renewable energies. Prominent scientists and economic researchers support the demand.
Today, Friday, climate protectors are gathering again around the world to protest against the climate crisis. Under the motto #PeopleNotProfit, the activists call for compliance with the Paris climate goals and a consistent climate policy. In Germany, the climate and environmental organization Fridays For Future (FFF) recently called for a special fund of 100 billion euros from the federal government to counter the climate crisis...
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gas crisis | self-made | Energy costs
The gas crisis is homemade
Opinion In winter we are threatened with a gas supply crisis. One cause is the war in Ukraine. But politics is also to blame for a lot. Fridays for Future rightly call for a climate fund
It was good news that started the week: the gas storage facilities are already 90 percent full and should be 95 percent by the beginning of November. However, the joy about it is somewhat clouded. Because the gas is not only bought at a high price, it also has other consequences: Poor countries like Pakistan or Bangladesh cannot keep up in the bidding competition for liquefied natural gas (LNG). There you wait in vain for delivery at the LNG terminals. The astronomical prices are also having consequences in this country: because the steeply rising energy costs are forcing the less well-off to ration themselves through frugality...
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Climate policy | protest action | Environmental associations
Environmental movement on protest course
Climate policy from the "pre-war period" is no longer enough
In the environmental and climate movement, frustration with the traffic light government is increasing. The responsible ministries are weakening or have completely disappeared. The head of the environmental umbrella organization believes that the concepts from the pre-war period are no longer sufficient to push the transformation forward.
It's not winter yet and there's already a chilly atmosphere between the federal government and the environmental movement. Because climate policy is on hold...
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September 23, 1983 (INES 4) Constituentes Nuclear Center, ARG
On September 23, 1983, a nuclear meltdown occurred in the Constituyentes nuclear center due to an operator error during the reconfiguration of the research reactor RA-2, in which 18 people were irradiated; one of the reactor technicians died two days later from the radiation damage he had suffered.
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Wikipedia - it
The RA-2 nuclear accident that occurred in Argentina on Friday, September 23, 1983 stems from serious human operator error that triggered a power excursion at the RA-2 research reactor. The reactor was located in the Centro Atómico Constituyentes, a department of the Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica (CNEA). This is the deadliest accident in the history of Argentine nuclear development, and the technician in charge of the tests died. In addition, 17 other people were exposed to varying degrees of radiation, depending on their distance from the scene of the accident...
Translated with https://www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
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Spiegel 17/1987
»A cold shiver runs down my spine«
SPIEGEL report on hidden nuclear power plant incidents around the world
Humanity has slipped past the catastrophe several times by a hair's breadth. This is revealed by 48 accident reports that were kept secret by the Vienna International Atomic Energy Agency: breakdowns, often of the most bizarre, profane kind from the United States and Argentina to Bulgaria and Pakistan ...
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22 September
renewable | strong wind | Power grid
Unused energy: This is how strong wind power should finally go into the grid
Winter is coming and gas prices are rising. However, researchers from Kiel have long been developing a solution to save on gas and heating oil. We would only have to make better use of the energy from wind power.
Renewable energies are becoming increasingly important not only in view of the climate crisis, but also because of the price increases caused by the Ukraine war and other factors. But even if there are already some wind turbines in Germany - we don't use them really efficiently. According to the NDR, around 3,1 billion kilowatt hours of energy are lost every year in Schleswig-Holstein alone. This is because the wind turbines are switched off on particularly stormy days...
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Runtime | energy crisis | Dependence
Nuclear power plant continued operation: Union proposal would prolong the energy crisis - Nothing learned from past mistakes
Olaf Bandt, Chairman of the German Federation for the Environment and Nature Conservation (BUND), commented on the draft law presented today by the CDU and CSU to extend the operating times for the Neckarwestheim 2, Isar 2 and Emsland nuclear power plants until at least the end of 2024:
With their policies, the Union parties made Germany dependent on Russia - which is at least as great in the nuclear sector as it is in fossil fuels. At the same time, they have ruined the country's formerly strong and growing solar and wind power industries. Tens of thousands of lost jobs in the renewable energy industry weigh on their conscience. Now the CDU and CSU are demanding a continuation of their wrong path...
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Nuclear power: Operating license for Neckarwestheim nuclear power plant in court
According to the plaintiff, cracks in the pipe system of the Neckarwestheim nuclear power plant made continued operation too risky. The judiciary has so far sided with the defendants.
The Mannheim Administrative Court (VGH) wants to negotiate in mid-December whether the Neckarwestheim nuclear power plant may continue to operate. Two residents of the nuclear power plant had already filed a lawsuit at the end of 2020. The reason for the lawsuit is a weakening of the wall thickness on the heating pipes running through the plant’s steam generators, which was discovered for the first time in 2017. These represent a barrier between the primary circuit and the radioactivity-free secondary circuit ...
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nuclear lobbyist | Rosatom | nukem
German nuclear lobbyist on Putin's payroll
In the nuclear industry there are similar links with Russia as in gas trading. Green Planet Energy has analyzed the connections between the string pullers in Germany and the Russians.
In the nuclear industry there are similar links with Russia as in gas trading. The CEO of the German nuclear lobby association Kern D, Thomas Seipolt, not only acts as the top German nuclear lobbyist, but also as head of a German subsidiary of the Russian energy company Rosatom. He is using the current gas crisis to promote greater independence from fossil fuels and the continued operation of nuclear power plants to secure energy beyond the turn of the year. Now Green Planet Energy are demanding an immediate end to this personal union, including interdependencies in the nuclear sector...
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Climate strike | Fridays for Future
For consistent exit
Fridays for Future global day of action is supported by a broad alliance of associations.
On Friday it's that time again: In numerous countries around the world, young people as well as older people take to the streets to protest for effective climate protection under the motto »People not Profits«. The political leaders should "no longer put corporate interests ahead of human life," it says in an appeal ...
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emergency reserve | Isar | Neckarwestheim
Habeck's emergency reserve: In addition to AKW Isar 2, Neckarwestheim 2 is also unsafe
Nuclear power debate drives new blossoms: safety deficiencies in the operational reserve nuclear power plants in Germany. In France, workers in nuclear power plants want to be exposed to higher doses of radiation in order to get the reactors connected to the grid.
Things are not looking good for the Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, Robert Habeck. Its gas levy, on which the energy oligopoly was allowed to participate in order to secure profit forecasts, is on the brink with the now planned nationalization of Uniper.
There is also a second area of uncertainty: the stretching operation at nuclear power plants, which Habeck finally redefined as an "emergency reserve". At this "construction site" too, the minister is accused of lacking steadfastness and knowledge...
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Reactor shutdown: Belgium dares to phase out nuclear power
In Belgium, a “crack reactor” went offline at the weekend. This first step towards nuclear phase-out is also eagerly awaited in this country.
Belgium is taking a first step towards phasing out nuclear power: On Saturday night, one of the country's most controversial reactors will be shut down after around 40 years of operation. German opponents of nuclear power still see no reason to celebrate. Because in view of the Ukraine war and the energy crisis, there is also a dispute about security of supply in Belgium. The original phase-out target date of 2025 is on the brink...
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September 22, 1980 (INES 3 | NAMS 1,6) Sellafield Nuclear factory, GBR
Corrosion in the B38 building Magnox storage silo resulted in the release of 2 Tbq of plutonium ...
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This accident, as well as several other releases of radioactivity originating from Sellafield, are no longer in the German Wikipedia a DAK Bungalow.
Wikipedia - en
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sellafield#Incidents
Between 1950 and 2000 there were 21 serious off-site incidents or accidents involving radiological releases that warranted classification on the International Nuclear Event Scale, one at Level 5, five at Level 4 and fifteen at Level 3. In addition, there were in intentional releases of plutonium and irradiated uranium oxide particles into the atmosphere known for extended periods in the 1950s and 1960s...
Translated with https://www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
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21 September
Fire at French uranium plant
The French nuclear regulatory agency ASN has given the all-clear after a fire at a uranium plant in the south-east of the country. Radioactive substances were not affected by the fire, it said in a statement on Wednesday evening. Since the fire in Romans-sur-Isere had been brought under control, the previously set up crisis management team had also been dissolved. Experts should carry out further tests on Thursday. A spokesman for the operator Framatome said no employee was injured. Framatome is a division of nuclear power giant EDF. According to the group's website, the Romans-sur-Isere site produces fuel for nuclear reactors based on enriched uranium...
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Deutsche Umwelthilfe | Golden Vulture
Advertisement for "CO2 compensation" in the amount of 1,1 cents per liter:
German environmental aid awards Shell negative prize for the "boldest environmental lie".
Lufthansa came second with a concept similar to that of the oil company, followed by McDonalds. According to environmental aid, more than 2 people took part in the vote.
The German Environmental Aid (DUH) has awarded the oil company Shell the negative price "Golden Vulture" for the "boldest environmental lie". Shell Germany had advertised a "CO2 compensation" of 1,1 cents per liter at the gas station - the DUH and a majority of the participants in an online vote saw this as "greenwashing at the expense of the climate, the environment and consumers Consumer" ...
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27 centimeters sea level rise is set
In Greenland, 110 cubic kilometers of ice will melt, no matter what measures mankind takes.
The Greenland glaciers will not melt away completely any time soon, but they lose more water each year than is added. The sea level will therefore rise by 27,4 centimeters in any case, even if no more greenhouse gases were released into the atmosphere from today.
3,3 percent of the Greenland ice sheet or 110 cubic kilometers of ice will be lost in this way. This is the maximum optimistic estimate by an international team of glaciologists from the National Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland...
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Nature Conservation | UN General Assembly | Biodiversity
“Earth Survival”:
Scholz announces billions for global nature conservation
The Federal Chancellor makes a commitment to a far-reaching international nature conservation agreement and, with a financial commitment, gives hope for some movement in the negotiations
Germany is significantly increasing its financial support for global nature conservation. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) announced on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly on Tuesday (local time) in New York that the federal government would increase its previous aid for developing countries to protect species and ecosystems to 2025 billion euros per year by 1,5 at the latest. On average, this corresponds to a doubling of the funds for international development cooperation in the area of biodiversity protection in recent years...
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reserve nuclear power plant | leaks | Cracks
Leaks and cracks in nuclear power plants
Habeck's plan to keep two nuclear power plants as emergency reserves is about to fail
Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) is not only threatened with a setback in his gas surcharge. His suggestion that the two nuclear power plants Isar 2 in Bavaria and Neckarwestheim 2 in Baden-Württemberg be kept available as an "emergency reserve" beyond the turn of the year because of possible upcoming energy certificates, is proving to be more and more nonsensical, technically hardly feasible and also extremely dangerous.
[...]
Because there is not much opposition to nuclear power in the SPD either, and because many media outlets, led by the FAZ and Welt, are banging on about extending the lifetime and restarting nuclear power plants, Habeck saw himself on the defensive: his “compromise offer” should be taking some pressure out of the cauldron while also taking the base of the greens with it. A move away from the exit date of December 31, no matter how carefully, would probably open the door to a comeback in nuclear policy.
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20 September
Isar | Neckarwestheim | reserve nuclear power plant | Fuel assemblies
energy crisis:
Which complicates the backup operation of nuclear power plants
In an emergency, Isar-2 and Neckarwestheim II should supply electricity until spring. But that is not possible with the old fuel elements – and now there is also a valve leak.
Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck's scenario sounded simple: the three remaining nuclear power plants in Germany - Emsland, Isar-2 and Neckarwestheim II - will no longer produce electricity from the end of 2022, as stipulated by the Atomic Energy Act passed by the former black-yellow federal government. If, on the other hand, there is a power shortage in winter 2023, which the four major power grid operators warn about after a stress test, the reactors of the two power plants Isar-2 and Neckarwestheim II will be switched on again briefly if necessary...
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Runtime | Stretch operation | Stress test
We don't need nuclear power, not even in this energy crisis
No extension of service life, no stretching operation and not even a nuclear power emergency reserve are necessary to counteract the crisis appropriately. A closer look at the second stress test shows this
Britta Haßelmann, leader of the Green Party, put it in a nutshell: there is no debate that is as fact-free as the one about extending the lifespan of nuclear power plants. In any case, CDU leader Friedrich Merz never misses an opportunity to claim that continuing to operate the nuclear reactors for three to five years could solve the current energy crisis. Quite apart from the safety question, which should actually be the top priority in this question, the data situation for the electricity market does not allow this conclusion either. No extension of service life, no stretching operation and not even a nuclear power emergency reserve are necessary to adequately counter the crisis ...
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nuclear disaster | Zaporizhia | Warmonger
We are working on the (nuclear) catastrophe
For the past few weeks, the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine has been under fire – and in the headlines. For the past few weeks, our media has been scaring the hell out of this shelling and the threat of a nuclear catastrophe. We are the leaders now!
Will war come to us after all - in the form of a radioactive cloud? So doesn't this stop at the German border, as German politicians had promised us when the nuclear power plant in Chernobyl caused a disaster in 1986?
Every few days we are informed that the dramatic situation around the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant is even more dramatic. The drama has hardly any potential for improvement...
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Taxonomy | Environmentalist | Community lawsuit
Environmentalists plan class action lawsuit against EU taxonomy
"Natural gas and nuclear are not green." But nuclear power and gas have been classified as sustainable and climate-friendly by the EU Commission. Greenpeace and other environmental organizations consider this a "breaking of the law".
This premiere would also be a sign of a turning point: there should soon be a first joint lawsuit from various environmental protection organizations at European level. "Lawyers for the Earth and the Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland (Bund), together with other environmental groups, have officially initiated legal proceedings" targeting the EU taxonomy decision, as the Bund informs ...
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Isar | leakage | reserve nuclear power plant
"switch off as soon as possible"
Future of Isar 2 is open again due to leakage
A defective valve in the Isar 2 reactor gets the nuclear debate rolling again. Even if the damage is probably not dangerous, it should now steer the discussion in a different direction. The environment and economic ministries want to reconsider the reserve operation of the power plant.
After it became known that a valve was damaged in the Isar 2 nuclear power plant in Bavaria, the Bund Naturschutz (BN) called for the immediate shutdown of the nuclear reactor. "The shocking information from the nuclear power plant operator Preussen-Elektra about damage to a broken valve in the reactor that apparently was either not discovered or was covered up confirms the fears of the Federal Nature Conservation Agency: the nuclear power plant is not safe and must be shut down as soon as possible," said the state chairman of the BN , Richard Mergner ...
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The Gazprom lobby
How Russia used German politicians, managers and lawyers to make Germany dependent on its gas
Since there was hardly any Russian gas flowing through the pipelines, everyone understood that without this import it would be much more expensive to heat homes and run shops. The big arithmetic starts in every household: How much heat can we still afford? Companies fear for their existence. But why we have become so dependent on Russia has so far remained largely in the dark.
One answer: Russian gas from the energy giant Gazprom was considered cheap. Above all, however, there were networks of German politicians, energy managers and lawyers that led Germany into a dangerous dependency for years. Some things are already known - for the first time we can now show a comprehensive picture of this Russian Gazprom lobby, which we are constantly updating ...
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19 September
Ministry of the Environment - New situation in the nuclear reserve after the Isar-2 leak
The Federal Ministry for the Environment wants to review the plans for a nuclear power plant stand-by reserve after reports of damage to the Isar-2 reactor. "The Federal Environment Ministry, like the Ministry of Economics, is examining the new situation and its effects on the design and implementation of the standby reserve," the environment department said on Monday. The background is that the operator informed PreussenElektra last week about a valve leak in the reactor. Safety is not endangered. The reactor could also run until the actually planned shutdown date at the end of the year. But if it has to run beyond that, a one-week standstill and repairs will be necessary as early as October...
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Gas prices: (as of 19.09.2022/XNUMX/XNUMX)
A kilowatt hour of natural gas costs the consumer 21,75 cents.
A megawatt hour of natural gas costs 180 euros on the exchange.
Gas is currently so expensive and could become so in the future
The already high gas prices continue to rise. In view of the gas price development, experts warn of up to 200 percent higher bills for consumers. The most important things at a glance.
Gas prices in Germany have been rising rapidly for a year. The sudden increase in demand for gas towards the end of the global corona pandemic last autumn triggered the price rally. Driven many times further by the consequences of the Ukraine war, the costs for one megawatt hour (MWh) of natural gas are now at an all-time high.
[...]
The largest price jump will not reach the population until 2023.
Consumers are correspondingly unsure of what they will have to prepare for in the coming months...
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Taxonomy | conservationist | want to sue
atom and gas
Conservationists want to sue against "green" classification
Anyone who invests in nuclear power plants or gas infrastructure will be doing something for the climate in future under the new EU rules. Environmentalists have sharply criticized this - and are taking action with an ultimatum.
Brussels - Several environmental organizations want to sue against new EU rules that classify nuclear power plants and gas infrastructure as climate-friendly projects from January. Among others, the WWF, Greenpeace and the BUND call on the EU Commission to withdraw the relevant regulation, as emerged from two communications on Monday. The Brussels authorities now have until February to respond. Otherwise, the environmentalists want to go to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ...
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18 September
electricity price market | renewable | Merit order
New electricity market for 100 percent renewables by 2030
Electricity prices are also exploding because of a failed electricity market regulation. We urgently need a new one that is based on inexpensive, decentralized renewable energies instead of the maximum profits of fossil energy companies. But excessive profits from solar and wind power producers must also be ended.
Even before Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, energy prices were skyrocketing - due to global bottlenecks in the availability of fossil and nuclear raw materials. With the war, the price of natural gas in particular was driven up, since Putin also uses energy as a weapon against the EU.
The fact that Putin has this market power at all and can abuse energy politically is the result of a massively failed energy policy during the 16 years of Merkel's government. These include a statutory stalling of renewable energies, an extension of the lifetime of nuclear power plants (before the U-turn with the nuclear phase-out) and the ever-increasing energy dependency on foreign suppliers, especially Russia.
The further warming of the earth, the increasing droughts and heat waves in the EU are evidence of this failed energy policy under Merkel, created by the responsible ministers Gabriel (SPD), Rösler (FDP) and Altmaier (CDU) ...
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Agri photovoltaics | Agriculture | Solar
Why farmers are now enthusiastic about solar systems
Germany's largest agricultural photovoltaic system is located in Lower Saxony. This is what systems are called that stand on a field and generate solar power. More and more farmers appreciate the advantages - also for their harvest.
Robert Lettenbichler didn't even know the word "agri-photovoltaics" until four years ago. But then he was fascinated by the idea of installing a solar system on a field. The 44-year-old can now be considered a pioneer of technology. Because the largest agricultural photovoltaic system in Germany is located on the property of his family in Wendland. It provides electricity while herbs grow on the ground. The system near Lüchow is six meters high. So a tractor can easily drive underneath. On the left and right of the edge of the field - and again in the middle - there are steel pillars. Overall, the system is 36 meters wide. Solar modules are attached to the scaffolding - but with gaps so that sunlight can still fall on the field. Lettenbichler chose chives for the field because the plant belongs to the semi-shade family and can therefore thrive well under the solar system...
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North Korea | nuclear programme | MIC | arms deals
nuclear power North Korea
This is how North Korea is financing its billion-dollar nuclear program
North Korea is a nuclear power. Recently, leader Kim Jong-Un announced that this status is non-negotiable and will never be relinquished. The German economics professor Ralph Wrobel explains that normal people pay a high price for this, even with slave labor for China, Russia or Qatar.
SRF News: As one of the poorest countries in the world, how can North Korea afford a nuclear weapons program?
Ralph Wrobel: North Korea is a very poor country with major economic problems due to the planned economy that still prevails. But that is also an advantage, because forced savings are possible in a planned economy. At the expense of consumption and population, the country can finance industrialization and nuclear and missile projects. This is usually not possible in the market economy ...
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Polluters should pay | waste disposal | Single-use plastic
Expensive waste disposal:
Anyone who litters should pay
The Ministry of the Environment wants manufacturers of single-use plastic to share in the costs of waste disposal. The bill is expected to be available in the fall.
Federal Environment Minister Steffi Lemke wants manufacturers of single-use plastic to share in the costs of removing waste from parks and streets. She is preparing a draft law, Lemke told the German Press Agency. With the bans on some plastic products, Germany has taken the first important steps. "I want to go further," emphasized the Green politician ...
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offshore | Solar | Photovoltaics
Plans for the North Sea
The solar industry is drawn to the water
In the near future, floating solar islands are to be built between offshore wind turbines in the North Sea. That could alleviate the lack of space on land. The first pilot plants are already in operation.
Lots of space, no neighbors, favorable weather - the sea offers the best conditions for generating green electricity. There are already 1.500 offshore wind turbines installed off the German coast.
Now the solar industry is also moving to the water: in the next few years, several floating, firmly anchored photovoltaic systems are to be installed in the North Sea ...
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September 18, 1980 (Rocket fuel explosion) Damascus, USA
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Wikipedia
September 18, 1980 - Complex 374-7, Little Rock AFB, Arkansas
During maintenance work on the Titan II missile in silo 374-7, a soldier dropped a wrench socket. This crashed into the silo and leaked the fuel tank of the first rocket stage, which was filled with Aerozin-50. Subsequently, the silo and later the launch control center of the complex were evacuated. In the early hours of September 19, two two-man teams were scheduled to enter the complex and take stock. At 3 a.m. the fuel ignited and the rocket exploded in the silo. The explosion injured 22 people, and one of the soldiers later died in hospital. The 740 t silo cover landed about 200 m from the silo. The Mk.6 reentry vehicle was destroyed, but the W-53 (9 megatons explosive power) warhead it contained was found largely intact about 100 m from the silo. Silo 374-7 was completely destroyed, but the launch control center remained completely intact.
The documentary film Damascus, USA. The GAU (English: Command and Control, German first broadcast on arte on July 21, 2020) is about these events. SAC decided not to rebuild the silo because of the high costs. The accident revealed many shortcomings in SAC's management of the Titan II program and contributed to the decision to phase out the missiles...
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YouTube
arte documentary - 01:27:29
Contemporary historical thriller about an accident in a nuclear weapons silo in the USA, which almost destroyed several major American cities: based on the memories of Air Force soldiers, armaments engineers and first responders, the chain of events in the US city of Damascus is traced, which almost led to a nuclear catastrophe would have led.
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17 September
Ukraine | Zaporizhia | Power grid
main restored
The Zaporizhia nuclear power plant is back on the grid
Uncertainty about the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine remains. But at least the largest European nuclear power plant is back on the grid. The external energy supply also ensures reactor cooling. According to the IAEA, however, fighting continues in the area.
The Ukrainian nuclear power plant at Zaporizhia, which was completely cut off from the external power supply, is once again being supplied from the national grid. The 750 kilovolt line, which has since been repaired, supplies Europe's largest nuclear power plant with the energy it needs for "reactor cooling and other essential safety functions", the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announced.
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Conflict over nuclear power plant construction site
Putin and Erdoğan settle nuclear dispute
Who is allowed to build the Akkuyu nuclear power plant in Turkey? A Turkish construction company has been arguing with the Russian Rosatom group for weeks. Now the dispute has apparently been settled – during a conversation between Putin and Erdoğan.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan have apparently defused the smoldering conflict over the billion-euro construction of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant. An agreement has been reached, says Erdoğan on the sidelines of the meeting of the SCO, a security alliance led by China and Russia. Akkuyu is a nuclear power plant currently under construction on Turkey's Mediterranean coast. The company Rosatom, a Russian state company, is in charge of this. The contract value of the project: more than 20 billion dollars.
In the past few weeks, there had been violent arguments about the construction site: According to Turkish media reports, Rosatom had withdrawn orders from a Turkish construction company. This protested against the procedure, the construction work was partially stopped. Rumors circulated that 7000 Turkish construction workers would lose their jobs...
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Dryness | Climate change | Groundwater
Rivers and inland waters are shrinking worldwide
More and more inland waters are suffering from the consequences of climate change. Streams and lakes are drying up more and more often and groundwater levels are falling. In most regions, it is therefore advisable to use water sparingly.
Groundwater levels have been falling in this country for five to ten years. In many places the streams are disappearing, smaller lakes are drying up. This can be seen above all in the dried up springs in the low mountain ranges. In around four percent of all large groundwater bodies in Germany, water abstraction exceeds groundwater recharge to a considerable extent...
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Russia | Sanctions | nuclear submarine
What will become of Russia's nuclear projects abroad and its own "nuclear legacy"?
After the invasion of Ukraine and subsequent sanctions, Russia is left alone in resolving key nuclear safety issues in the country. The projects will probably continue on the back burner. However, the future of new nuclear power plants abroad is unclear.
The international sanctions that have been imposed on Russia since the end of February affect all areas. The country is isolated from any international cooperation, from the economy to environmental protection, which was not the case after the 2014 annexation of Crimea.
[...]
About a hundred decommissioned nuclear submarines rusted on the shores of military bases, waiting to be disposed of. The country had no money, technology and experience to dispose of such objects and bring them to a safe condition.
From the mid-1990s, as the international community became aware of this fact, this nuclear legacy was tackled with enormous financial support from donor countries...
Top | |
| Current news+ | Background knowledge |
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News+ September 17
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Low-level radiation | radioactive radiation | Leibstadt | 21 trisomy
“Even low-level ionizing radiation poses a risk”
Studies show a suspicion – experts doubt it. The WHO is not free in research on radioactive radiation.
In August 2010, an accident occurred at the Leibstadt nuclear power plant. During the annual inspection of the plant, a diver worked in the water tank of the power plant. A metal pipe lay at the bottom of the pool. He picked it up and put it in a basket.
When his colleagues pulled up the basket and it was still around two meters below the water surface, the radiation alarm went off. "If you had pulled the basket completely out of the water, everyone in the room would have received a fatal dose," the diver later told the "health tip". The diver was irradiated in the accident. His right hand received a dose of radiation equivalent to about 150 chest X-rays, he said.
The Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate (NEXT) classified the incident as an accident. According to the head of information at the Leibstadt nuclear power plant, no radioactivity got into the area at the time: “The event in 2010 did not result in any additional radiation exposure of the local population. The radiation measured in the area (more than 99 percent natural radiation) remained unchanged over the entire period and is lower than in many other places in Switzerland.”
A study by the German mathematician Hagen Scherb is all the more surprising. After 2010, it shows a clear change in the gender ratio from births of boys to girls in the area around the Leibstadt nuclear power plant. Scherb suspects ionizing radiation as the reason...
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Background knowledge
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reaktorpleite.de
Map of the nuclear world:
body Study shows after 2010 a significant change in the gender ratio from births of boys to girls in the area around the Leibstadt nuclear power plant ...
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The internal search:
brought the following results, among others:
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Dangers of ionizing radiation - scientists refer to new data
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YouTube
Keyword search: Low Radiation Genetic Damage
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Videos:
Federal Office for Radiation Protection - 02:07
How does radiation affect humans?
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ZDF special - 02:29
How radioactivity harms humans!
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German TV history - 01:06:28
Because we didn't know anything about it! This show is from 1958.
Atomic dust above us - dangers of radioactive radiation (documentation, 1958)
Playlist - radioactivity worldwide ...
This playlist contains over 150 videos on the topic
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Ecosia
This search engine is planting trees!
Keyword search: Low Radiation Genetic Damage
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Wikipedia
Radioactivity in the environment
Radioactivity occurs partly naturally in our environment (without human intervention), partly it was or is generated by human activities (“anthropogenic”). The causes of natural radioactive radiation are primordial radionuclides with their secondary products as well as nuclides that are generated by cosmic radiation in the earth's atmosphere. Human-made radioactivity usually has an isotopic composition that differs from the natural one, because it also contains short-lived radionuclides that do not arise in series of decays or spallation processes.
Radioactivity generated or released by humans
Long before radioactivity was discovered, human activities such as mining and burning coal had released radioactive substances. Paracelsus described Schneeberger disease in 1567. Metal ores and coal contain more radionuclides than the average biosphere; Mine systems transport radon from the interior of the earth to the surface.
With the mining of uranium, the construction of nuclear power plants, and most importantly the construction and above-ground testing of nuclear weapons, radioactivity was released into the biosphere, which had a global impact.
Large amounts of radioactive substances were released (in addition to the nuclear tests up to 1963) as a result of accidents in nuclear facilities ...
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Radiation exposure
Radiation exposure is the effect of ionizing radiation on living things or on matter. In contrast to the term radiation exposure, radiation exposure in the language of radiation protection requires a damaging effect.
Radiation exposure from artificial sources
Another, albeit very small part of man-made radiation exposure is due to the normal operation of nuclear facilities, such as nuclear power plants. For technical reasons, during the operation of nuclear power plants, small amounts of radioactive substances are released into the air through the chimney or released into the environment via the cooling water. The resulting effective dose is on average less than 10 µSv per year, i.e. far below the natural radiation exposure. Nevertheless, according to a study, the result of which was confirmed by the Federal Office for Radiation Protection, in the vicinity of German nuclear power plants (radius of 5 km) children under the age of 5 are more frequently diagnosed with leukemia than the statistical average. Due to the low level of radioactive emissions from power reactors (factor 1.000 too low), the finding cannot be explained with the power reactors being the sole cause. In order to be able to explain the cause of this connection, further investigations are necessary ...
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Newsletter XXXVI 2022 - September 09th to 16th | Newspaper article 2022
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