Chernobyl

[XRated]

I'm sure there are quite a few of you who know about the Chernobyl ("Chornobyl") disaster in 1986. I've always found it a fascinating story ever since I read of "Elena's" solo-motorbike adventure into the surrounding ghost-towns. Unfortunately her particular story has been proven a deceitful lie, but nevertheless, Chernobyl created a very interesting, important, yet disastrous event in history.

For those that don't know or haven't heard about Chernobyl, on the 26th April in 1986 a nuclear power plant in a city called Pripyat in the Ukraine (possibly Russia/Soviet Union back then?) basically blew up causing catastrophe for people in cities up to 40kms away. It even affected some surrounding countries, in particular Belarus.

Surrounding towns were forced to evacuate; leaving homes, work, family possessions, pets, and all other things you treasure as a normal person living in a normal city. Until this day, the towns have been left neglected in fear of radiation poisoning. What it's left is are eerie-ghost-like town, where buildings are falling apart, tanks, cars, trucks and boats scatter the landscape abandoned. There are, however, still some workers in and around the area monitoring radiation levels and attempting to cover up the explosion site.

Anyway, I thought this might interest some people. It's a short clip from the National Geographic site giving you a quick overview of what happened: http://www7.nationalgeographic.com/n...ghts_n_sounds/

There is an abundance of information regarding Chernobyl that can be found online and in books with plenty of errie photos and intriguing stories. There are some really incredible photos I found on the 'net. I would like to do a tour there one day, but fear they will be coming to a complete halt within the next couple of years.

Cheers

[GXL078]

Last year Richard Carlton did a story on the 29th anniverary of Chernobyl, He went inside the plant (briefly) and they showed how much radiation was still there. It was one of his last stories for 60 minutes.
You can see it here: http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/s...story_1612.asp

[MITCHAY]

Originally Posted by xcgxl

Last year Richard Carlton did a story on the 29th anniverary of Chernobyl, He went inside the plant (briefly) and they showed how much radiation was still there. It was one of his last stories for 60 minutes.
You can see it here: http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/s...story_1612.asp

Yeah when he died, I initially thought that this could have caused it. I watched that story and man that place is dead.

I actually did a science assignment on this very topic back in high school.

[XRated]

Cheers xc, unfortunately I didn't see that episode of 60 minutes. I'm watching it now.

[GXL078]

Obviously I meant 20th anniversary, miss type

[LTDHO]

I watched somwhere that the site of the explosion still has a high level of radiation and they were considering enclosing it with a building to keep the radiation in.

It was very expensive, but would allow the surrounding areas to be more usable.

[Interceptor]

Originally Posted by XRated

I'm sure there are quite a few of you who know about the Chernobyl ("Chornobyl") disaster in 1986. I've always found it a fascinating story ever since I read of "Elena's" solo-motorbike adventure into the surrounding ghost-towns. Unfortunately her particular story has been proven a deceitful lie, but nevertheless, Chernobyl created a very interesting, important, yet disastrous event in history.

when was it proven that her site was a lie? seems an awful lot of effort to go to just to con people

[05MkIIFutura]

I too find the disaster amazing.

The following pics are taken from the page on wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_accident

Copyright on images below are most likely held by the photographer who took the photograph or the agency employing the photographer. I genuinly believe that the use of these photographs are beneficial to illustrate the event in question because:

• The photograph depicts a non-reproducible historic event, and no free alternative exists or can be created, and
• The images is low resolution and of no larger and of no higher quality than is necessary for the illustration of an article, and the use of the image is not expected to decrease the value of the copyright,

Chernobyl reactor 4 after the disaster, showing the extensive damage to the main reactor hall (image center) and turbine building (image lower left)



Abandoned living blocks of Chernobyl, with a surviving tree


The area was evacuated – but according to many people, not quickly enough. This is the now famous Pripyat Ferris wheel as seen from inside the town's Palace of Culture.



The early stages of construction of the Sarcophagus (Nuclear Reactor).



Map showing caesium-137 contamination in Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine. In curies per square kilometre (1 curie is 37 gigabecquerels).



A photograph of one of the lava-flows formed by corium Fuel containing mass in the basement of the Chernobyl plant. 1 is the lava flow, 2 is concrete, 3 is a steam pipe and 4 is some electrical equipment



A conceptual rendering of the New Safe Confinement to replace the aging sarcophagus.

[XRated]

Originally Posted by Interceptor

when was it proven that her site was a lie? seems an awful lot of effort to go to just to con people

There are a few good readings floating around the place. First and foremost, you are not allowed to take motorbikes into the area. Elena did a normal tour that you and I could do (pending good health) with her husband and staged most of the photos. Apparently she did it with that Rimma lady, who you can see in the 60 Minutes clip with Carlton, who was not impressed during her tour and even more upset with what was produced on the Internet. You will also notice that Elena's story has changed quite dramatically over time.

Here's one story with many interesting facts: http://www.uer.ca/forum_showthread_a...?threadid=8951.

Originally Posted by Ghia5L

I remember reading recently about people who were determined to live and work in the area still. Isolated people I mean, like one elderly couple who lived in their cottage there and had chickens, a vegie patch, etc, and lived a simple live in the contaminated zone. Fascinating read, and they're very brave for living that life.

Dave, that is what amazes me too. The government "turned a blind eye" as some older residents wanted to move back because they had nothing else left. Now the poor sods are driven to alcoholism and one can only assume, severely depressed.

Some shift-workers (if you can call it that) are only allowed to work for 15 minutes a day... I can't imagine how they must feel.

[Mechan1k]

Update Site for Elena

http://www.angelfire.com/extreme4/ki.../chapter1.html
http://www.angelfire.com/extreme4/ki...cherlinks.html
(Some of the pics are eerie and sometime a little disturbing)

Goes for ages but a good read and a good insight of what happened.

The reactor's sarcophagus (built around the reactor after the initial explosion) is breaking down and radiation is leaking out of it now ... a new one needs to be built around it to prevent this.

The surrounding areas are still affected though and will be for a long time ... I can't remember the half life of the radiation ... but it was several hundred years (or thereabouts).

[the_scotsman]

I also find this fascinating...there was a "Seconds From Disaster" all about Chernobyl, I'm guessing a lot of people have seen that too.
It explained exactly what happened, and who was to blame...very very interesting...

[DJM83]

Originally Posted by the_scotsman

I also find this fascinating...there was a "Seconds From Disaster" all about Chernobyl, I'm guessing a lot of people have seen that too.
It explained exactly what happened, and who was to blame...very very interesting...

I seen that on FOX aswell very very interesting. Would be a very interesting part of the world to visit.
OT, seen another doco today, ppl dont relise how close that part of the world came to another disaster like that with the Kursk nuclear sub that sank on 2000

[mcflux]

Borat's idea of a "romance explosion" at his Crazy 80s KGB-themed high school prom night went terribly wrong...

In all serial (ok ok, seriousness) though, I pity the photographer who took the photo of the hole where the #4 reactor building was! And all the sarcophagus construction crew. And pretty much every person impacted by the accident. I remember reading recently about people who were determined to live and work in the area still. Isolated people I mean, like one elderly couple who lived in their cottage there and had chickens, a vegie patch, etc, and lived a simple live in the contaminated zone. Fascinating read, and they're very brave for living that life.

[3Toed]

I too find this subject quite fascinating and have done some reading on it.

One thing I remember was the government at the time didn't publicise the emergency to the world. It was only when US satellites detected the radiation source and when radiation sensors at a Swedish nuclear power plant detected abormally high readings that the truth came out.

I found Elena's story riveting and was disappointed when I found out it was a con.

One thing I find amusing is various accounts of what happened, both written and documentaries, tell of either 1 explosion or 2. Wish they'd make up their minds about that.
The theory that I subscribe to is that there were 2 explosions. The first was a steam pressure explosion and once the reactor blew and air got in contact with the burning core, the second explosion and fire happened.

[Paxton]

The thing that frightens me the most about Chernobyl, is the fact that they ran Reactors 1 and 2 right up until 2001 (AFAIK). The other scary thing, is that the USSR denied any knowledge of the event until the Swedes noticed a radioactive cloud heading towards Sweden, and Europe (as 3Toed has said). I wouldn't liked to have been the person who alerted the authorities that there had been a monumental ****up at a Nuclear Reactor somewhere in Eastern Europe, and that there was the possibility of a Nuclear Holocaust.

I don’t remember it happening, however I do remember the fallout. For those that know #BT, look for the Documentary “The Legacy of Chernobyl”, or “Chernobyl Revisited”. Both are fascinating, and tell much that has not been told about the Disaster.

[dannyxm]

Indeed a very sad story. Terrible but somehow facisnating how these things happen.

I watched a documentary a while back on another disaster, the Bhopal disaster in India.

A terrible disaster that i had no idea about unitl i watched the doco on SBS one evening. It left me shocked to say the very least.

Im just curious if anyone else is aware of the disater.

http://bhopal.strategicvideo.net/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhopal_Disaster

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2aJgLHKoZg

[Hardtopxb]

And to think that this area has a Half Life of 20,000 odd years is quite frightening..

[XR06T]

very interesting reading on both counts!!

never heard of the bhopol disaster before, sounds like the court cases etc are ongoing

[savagE]

I would love to journey into Chernobyl. (with appropriate protection)

[RegSpec]

Unfortunately not just Chernobyl either,
Back in the sixties the Russians had a major nuclear catastrophe and whole towns just disappeared from maps, hundreds of square kilometers of land rendered useless for years to come....and since the Russians of the day were so paraniod about information leaking out to the west, they don't even have any idea of the final death toll but it was obvious at the time it would run into the thousands :
I believe the area is still cordoned off to this day, complete with skull and crossed bones signs on the gates.....bloody idiots. :

[Falcon_Phill]

Those photos are cool. It reminds me of what the whole world would look like if everyone used nuclear bombs in another world war. It all looks so eerie.

[fordel]

Definately a place I want to visit one day just to see it all.

Very scary and eerie but at the same time absolutely fascinating and would be great to see for real.

[XR06T]

yea, would like to see it. would be like a time warp!

[rigs]

Things could be worse - they could build a temporary, floating nuclear power station - and then market it to pacific island nations - but no-ones that crazy.
surely.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6562925.stm

[XRated]

Originally Posted by rigs

Things could be worse - they could build a temporary, floating nuclear power station - and then market it to pacific island nations - but no-ones that crazy.
surely.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6562925.stm

That's just down-right scary! I can't even fathom the damage it would do to the world if a nuclear disaster was to happen floating in the middle of the ocean.

I've just started reading a book on people's (mainly women) experiences at the time of Chernobyl's catastrophe. It's interesting to note how governments in different (mainly surrounding) countries dealt with it and kept quiet for so long because they "didn't want to cause panic."

Many places upped the maximum levels of radiation in everything from milk products to mushrooms. Not only that, but because of the large quantity of food usually consumed wasn't safe enough for European countries, it was shipped off to African/Middle Eastern countries - the poor sods were clueless.

[uranium_death]

Chernobyl...a good reminder of what can happen when idiots run a nuclear plant.

Fortunately, we have John Howard and Kevin Rudd. They'll keep it safe. :

[Airmon]

It is indeed a very interesting topic. There are a few cities like this scattered throughout the old Soviet empire.

Alot of people use this as an argument against Nuclear power, and while I am neither an advocate for or against, it has to be said that Nuclear power has come a long way since then and is much safer. I have a whole bunch of links somewhere for other Russian Ghost towns, really eirrie stuff.

And please dont say this was a typicall Russian use of Nuclear power, stuffing it up and killing many thousands. The US Record isnt perfect either, Three Mile Island incident anyone?

Also, it wasnt a terrific Nuclear 'Explosion' like many people get the impression it is. The whole reactor Melted into the ground. And while the immediate surroundings of the reactor are unsafe to visit, the city of Chernobyl is still habitable as far as I know. The surrounding reactors (the reactors which didnt meltdown in the same facility) were operational up until the mid 90s. They just blocked the hole off with concrete to stop the radiation. However, The radiation has seeped into the ground hence all the plant and animal life is dead and water cannot be transported underground, but other than that people can still live above ground.

Also I am not sure which radioactive substance is around Chernobyl, but whichever it is, it is more likely to have a half life of many thousands (or even millions) of years.

**Oh, and you thought the Russians had no clue? Ever see the Americans plan for sending people into space in the 50s? http://www.damninteresting.com/?p=679

The gist of that long link? The Americans wanted to put a massive craft ontop of an Iron plate which was ontop of massive springs which were ontop of another iron plate. The idea was to set of nuclear bombs underneath the craft to propell it upwards, the springs would act as dampers to make the ride more comfortable to the inhabbitants of the craft.

[Head Injury]

I lived in Kiev in the mid-nineties for a couple of years. Unless you had some form of high level access you could go no further than the 30km exclusion zone. The other reactors were still running at the time. Had a few good swims in the Knieper river downstream but I don't glow in the dark. :monkes:

The same class reactor runs in about 4-5 other locations in Ukraine as well as a few other former Soviet-brother countries.

Kiev has a magnificent museum dedicated to those that perished. It pulls no punches in the way that the Soviet system and its accompanying mindset sent lambs to the slaughter both during and after the accident. All in the name of "saving face".

Wonderfull people, wonderful country - screwed over by a system that will take a generation or more to fix.

[schnoods]

I seen once a doco explaining a bit about nuclear usage around the world.

It showed Chernobyl but also most disturbing were a few generators that litter around country Russia. Most disturbing were the fact the amount of time since they were last used and the fact the Nuclear cells were decaying.

Showing the disposal of the cell ( about the size of a shoebox) and having every one in special suits and geigermeters clicking. 2 people with large tongs and only allowed 30 secs of exposure before irreversable damage takes place.

5 pairs of people used to put a shoe box sized cell into a lead drum.

Apparently during the clean up they found a few cells missing and a few explanations came up. Maybe they were already disposed of? Maybe terrorist acessed them?

Dangerous stuff.

[RussR]

Originally Posted by Head Injury

I lived in Kiev in the mid-nineties for a couple of years. Unless you had some form of high level access you could go no further than the 30km exclusion zone. The other reactors were still running at the time. Had a few good swims in the Knieper river downstream but I don't glow in the dark. :monkes:

The same class reactor runs in about 4-5 other locations in Ukraine as well as a few other former Soviet-brother countries.

Kiev has a magnificent museum dedicated to those that perished. It pulls no punches in the way that the Soviet system and its accompanying mindset sent lambs to the slaughter both during and after the accident. All in the name of "saving face".

Wonderfull people, wonderful country - screwed over by a system that will take a generation or more to fix.

Lithuania is the only country left running an RBMK reactor, and it's slowly being decommisioned before they're allowed into the EU.

It's amazing how the Soviets didn't care for the people around the reactor, or the heroes that helped extinguish the fires, or dumped dolomite and sand onto the core to stop it radiating. Theres a few videos on you tube of helicopter pilots flying over, they were dead in 15 minutes.. theres one crashing into the fuel crane as well..

such a sad thing...