Recently, I was asked the intriguing question: “where did the black and yellow symbol for radioactivity come from?” What surprised me was that, despite using it almost every day in the lab, I hadn’t even considered its origin before now. So I did some digging. The life of the radioactive ‘trefoil’ began in 1946 at […]
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The recent protests against the proposed Wylfa Newydd nuclear power station have brought to the media’s attention a very pressing issue: lots of people don’t want to live near nuclear power stations. While public support for nuclear power outweighs opposition [1], proposed nuclear sites often face resistance from local communities. This is despite the promises […]
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Having discussed the engineering and installation of the Chernobyl NSC, it is important to keep in mind the lasting impact of the accident on the local population and the surrounding environment. Ellis Rintoul examines the Chernobyl exclusion zone and the future of this vast area of contaminated land. The Zone of Alienation, commonly known as the […]
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The nuclear accident at Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant has been discussed previously on Hitchhiker, with features mainly focusing on the immediate history of the disaster (More can be read here). Today, the Chernobyl site remains a concern within the nuclear industry, and the containment of radioactive material is crucial when considering environmental and social impact. The Chernobyl […]
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This month we will be discussing the Chernobyl New Safe Confinement and what impact the new construction might have on public and scientific opinion of the disaster. Mark Williams introduces the NSC with a short piece on why the arch is necessary. Many will have seen the time-lapse above and noticed an unusually positive response (for nuclear) to the […]
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By Eirik Eide Pettersen A positive public opinion of nuclear energy is essential for its success. Nevertheless, in a number of countries it has proved difficult to convince the public of the benefits of nuclear power over the 70 year history of the nuclear industry. One country that has been particularly affected by a […]
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With the vote cast and Britain leaving the EU, it’s hard to say what’s going to happen. Ellis Rintoul takes a look at what people have been saying. The new nuclear build in the UK, planned in order to replace our fleet of ageing nuclear reactors, is being controversially pioneered by the new pressurised water […]
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