Please visit the website and blog of one of your table members. Copy 3 of their questions related to the Chernobyl article from yesterday and answer them on a post below for all of us to view :-)
1. If the chemicals were different (I.e. Not nuclear) how would this affect the aftermath?
Any other type of power source could be devastating- nuclear being at the top. Oil and coal failures could create larger pollution outbreaks. There is always a danger of a power source failing.
2. Why could people not eat crops during the time of the explosion?
Nuclear radiation spreads very far and can affect the crops in the area. This could contaminate crops, therefore spreading radiation to people who eat said crops.
3. How could this have been prevented?
This could have been prevented if people cared to look after the plant. While people worked long shifts, the workers had to realize that nuclear power is very risky and must be contained at all times to prevent what happened.
1. Should the Chernobyl scientists have been testing the nuclear plant in a populated area without warning the public? I don't think so because they should have known that they was a possibility of explosion or something else going wrong before continuing and not warning the people that they were testing.
2. Is it right for people to live in constant fear of the state of their health in this area? No because people shouldn't have to live in fear for their lives everyday thinking that they could get some nuclear sickness and die. If people everyday started to live in fear of their health it could possibly lead to an outbreak of insanity. People should be able to go on with their everyday task and not have to worry about some horrible nuclear sickness that could infect them and possible kill them.
3. Although nuclear power is one of our strongest sources, should we risk the health of people to have more power? I don't think that we should ever risk the lives of our people. If we want nuclear powers badly then we should do it somewhere were if there was problem such as an explosion and more toxins went into the air there should be no worry about people getting hurt and dying. If anyone should think that we should just out nuclear power plants near towns or cities knowing that anyway something could go terribly wrong, we shouldn't have any close enough to cause any real damage .
1) Why would the scientists test the experiment without removing citizens (as a precaution) not knowing the effects? A: It is very probably that if the scientists behind the experiment disclosed all of the information, including the negative effects, the government and others would not fund the project. If people were afraid of the disaster or had been able to foresee it, they would have evacuated, leaving the reactors with no reason to be built since it generated 40% of Ukraine's power. 2) How did this effect other nuclear plants? A: This brings awareness to the precautions of engineers and scientists working on other plants and raises awareness of the danger of nuclear power. 3) What are the effects when you turn off the safety system? What happens? Does the machine become unstable? A: During the Chernobyl experiment, the scientists turned the power down, which at a low power rate, the reactor became unstable and created more steam. When scientists realized what was happening, they turned the emergency power on, but instead of stopping it, it accelerated the power and in about three seconds, exploded.
From the Reflection of Julian Bell. 1. What date did the disaster occur on? A.) April 26, 1986 was the date of the disaster. 2. What type of disaster occurred? A.) A nuclear meltdown occurred in a plant North of Pripyat, Ukraine. 3. Approximately how many people fell ill during the time of the disaster? A.) 203 people were hospitalized within the evacuation period and the long-term results are still ongoing.
Q: Why did scientists test it without removing citizens as a precaution? A: Scientists most likely did not know that the nuclear spill would cause that many long term effects and didn't want to concern citizens with an unnecessary evacuation.
Q: Do you think that all countries were effected and helped cleanup? A: Yes, I think many countries were effected, because when there is a world disaster, especially one in an ally or peaceful country, we take notice and try to help.
Q: How did this affect other nuclear plants? A: It may have affected other nuclear plants by giving them a warning that this could happen in any one of them. It probably also made citizens living near plants concerned and upset with them.
Over 7 million people were effected. The most heavily affected areas were in Belarus, Russia and Ukraine. However, sheep in northern England and reindeer in Lapland had to be killed as they had been irradiated. ~ http://www.friendsofchernobylcenters.org/?Facts_about_Chernobyl
How many people were killed by this explosion?
The initial explosion resulted in the death of two workers. Twenty-eight of the firemen and emergency clean-up workers died in the first three months after the explosion from Acute Radiation Sickness and one of cardiac arrest. ~http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Features/Chernobyl-15/cherno-faq.shtml
Will people ever be able to live there again?
One may certainly visit the Chernobyl area, including even the exclusion zone, which is a 30 kilometre radius surrounding the plant, all of whose reactors are now closed. Although some of the radioactive isotopes released into the atmosphere still linger (such as Strontium-90 and Caesium-137), they are at tolerable exposure levels for limited periods of time. ~ http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Features/Chernobyl-15/cherno-faq.shtml
Why where the scientists not informed that the reactor was unstable?
The scientists did know that the reactor becomes unstable when the amount of power and amount of steam released is changed but, by the time they pressed the emergency stop button it was too late.
Why was this not prevented?
The accident was not prevented because the safety equipment was turned off so they could conduct tests. Because the safety equipment was turned off, a large amount of steam built up, which blew the top off of the building, which caused the disaster.
Why did they put soldiers at risk of radiation to stand guard?
The made soldiers stand guard to keep people out of contaminated areas and to allow authorized people in and out.
1. The area around a nuclear reactor (outside of 30km) was contaminated with radioactive materials as well, how is wild life living with great health?
1-answer. I think that the wild life have either evolved in a way that they aren't affected by the radioactivity or they know which areas to stay away from. It could very well be that the animals do get sick, but then the healthy numbers wouldn't be able to be explained. The radioactive materials might not be close to animal habitation so the animals aren't affected, also.
3. Will the families that have been separated ever be able to reunite?
3-answer. I do think that if the families really valued being together, they would find a way to contact each other. If I was separated from my family, I would try to find them, non-stop.
5. Will it ever be safe to inhabit that area again?
5-answer. I think this area will always be an unsafe area to some people. Yes, it is possible to clean the area up, but the memories are the reasons that people won't visit. You can erase all signs of bad things, but you can't erase memories.
1. Was it really just a few worker's faults for the explosion or was there more to it?
It was not just a few workers fault. It was several people that made a big mistake and caused the plant to explode. Many of those people were put in jail for their doings.
2. Will it ever be safe for humans to live in again? If so, when?
As of right now, the population of the city is 0. It has been abandoned since 1986. I do not think that people will go back for a long time because the history of the whole town is not safe to people. They do not feel safe in that town.
3. What parts of Ukraine were effected?
The part of Ukraine that was most effect was Pripyat', but It was widespread. Luckily, the explosion was did not harm the capital, Kiev.
Responce to Andi's questions. 1. 30,000 of the 400,000 fell ill. 2. 5% of Ukraine's power is generated by 2 reactors. 3. There were about 800 burial sites within 300 km of Chernobyl.
2) How was the Chernobyl disaster caused? A: A nuclear reactor of the nuclear variety has a problem with becoming unstable when run at low energy and the reactor blew it's top.
4) How many square kilometers were contaminated? Which countries were affected? A: The particles were so horrible they even fell on the far away countries like the U.S. And Japan.
3) How much more radiation was let out during the disaster than the Hiroshima bombing? How much radiation was let out? A: The disaster equalled the amount of radiation from the nuclear strike at least. No one will ever know how much radiation was actually ever let out but the Soviet measurement of 90 million curies represents the minimum amount of radiation.
What other countries were affected? The other countries that were affected along with Ukraine were Belarus, Russia, Georgia, Poland, Sweden, Germany, Turkey. In addition, Poland, Germany, Austria, and Hungary as well as Ukraine their crops and milk were so contaminated they had to be destroyed.
What type of disaster occurred? A radioactive nuclear meltdown explosion. The destroyed reactor caused hundreds of times more radiation than was produced by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
What is the name (correct spelling too) of the abandoned city? The name of the abandoned city was Pripyat. Pripyat, a once vibrant city of 45,000, was home to many workers fro the Chernobyl plant. It was evacuated after the accident and remains deserted.
Natalie's Questions :D 1. Were the operators the ones that were jailed? A. Yes they were. It says in the 1st paragraph of the article that some of the operators and the people that were on shift at the time were jailed for their role in the nuclear explosion, even though they never admitted they were guilty.
2. Did people know the dangers of running the tests on the reactor? A. No they did not know that if they did tests on the reactor that it would cause a radioactive disaster, and they didn't know the magnitude of the power in the reactor or how it would react to those types of tests.
3. If the citizens send their children and themselves after they are exposed to radiation, can't they pass it on to more people? A. Yes they can pass it on to other people, especially their kids, because radioactivity can stay in your body and can be passes on by genetics. Radioactivity has also been known to cause cancers and tumors which may also be passed down to your kids and other generations.
2) How was the Chornobyl disaster caused? The Chernobyl accident in 1986 was the result of a flawed reactor design that was operated with inadequately trained personnel. 4) How many square kilometers where contaminated? What countries where affected? The plume drifted over large parts of the western Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, and Northern Europe. 5) What is being done to stop the radiation from spreading?
From Kean's Blog: 1. Was there any other cities that were affected badly by this?
Yes, there were several other cities affected. The blast was even felt in Switzerland, but it was not as deadly. They actually had higher radioactivity levels.
2. If you were in Chernobyl at the time of the explosion what what you sacrifice? for example; pets, clothes, extra food, etc.
I would sacrifice every non-living thing. I would not have been able to live with myself if a pet of mine were to have to suffer death. It would break me completely. I would never forgive myself, and I know I would be the cause of a life that will have ended.
3. If you were a parent of a child or children would you risk splitting up or wait until you could all go together?
I would spilt up, even if we would never see each other again. I would rather speed out than stay and have higher risks of death and disease. I would set up a meeting point and time, if I could.
What were the symptoms of Chernobyl AIDS? Some symptoms included fatigue, apathy, and a decreased number of natural killer cells in the blood.
How much has Thyroid Cancer increased? The disaster will cause up to 50,000 new cases of thyroid cancer among young people living in the area.The rate of the cancer in ages 15-18 is also three times higher than it was before the dissaster took place.
How much graphite was burned in the ten day period? Hundreds of tons of graphite that had served as a moderator in the reactor burned for 10 days.
1. What could have caused this disaster? It was caused by a group of engineers that were seeing how long the nuclear reactor would go without power. Istead of slowing down, it's power increased immensely and blew up.
2. What could be done to prevent this from happening again? Well since it was caused by people being irresponsible if everyone did their job like they were supposed to and not do experiment in the workplace that could have bad effects.
5. Are there any people that are still affected by the nuclear effects today? Yes about 100,000 people are living with higher radiation than normal.
If you came in contact with the contaminated milk ans crops, what would happen?
If you came in direct contact with contaminated milk and crops, you would probably get very sick and die if you ate them or touched them. Many animals came across this unfortunate fate.
Why and how did the explosion happen?
The explosion happened because the people who worked there were conducting an experiment to see how long the reactors would run without power, but a design flaw in the number four reactor, made it unstable when running on low power and it exploded.
Will the Chernobyl area ever be safe for humans to re-inhabit it?
Chernobyl could possibly be safe to re-inhabit, but the reactor would have to be covered up again which would take 5 years and $300 million. Animals have now re-inhabited the land, so we know that it is not contaminated or at least not contaminated enough to harm them.
They were testing a new reactor and had to turn all of the safety equipment off so it wouldnt interfere with the power, it did not go as well as they expected and gas leaked and the reactor blew up.
Are people that were effected by the chernobyl explosion still efeected today.
Yes many of them died a couple days after they helped the clean up or the ones that were there. They absorbed 500 times the limit that the public should absorb in a year. The ones that lived are effected by cancer and other dieseses to this day.
1. Why and how did the explosion happen? A reactor had a design flaw that causes it to be unstable at low power. Someone tried to shut down the reactor because it was at low power, but it was too late. It resulted in two explosions.
2. Are people today still being effected by the disaster? If so, how? Yes, because it is still one of the most dangerous places on Earth. 800 burial sites are filled with highly radioactive waste.
3. Will the Chornobyl area ever be safe for humans to re-inhabit? No. It is largely uninhabited and it probably always will be.
(Una's) Chernobyl 3 questions 1. Did Chernobyl affect the fall of the Soviet Union?
1A. Yes, Chernobyl affected the fall of the Soviet Union. When the nuclear accident happened it cost the Soviet billions of dollars. It was not doing well to begin with so having to evacuate all those people and resettle them helped to quickly break down the Soviet Union.
2. What are the events that happened before the nuclear accident that late April night in 1986?
2A. Before the nuclear explosion happened, some operators were performing a test to see how the generator would work without power. This was not a good idea because the generator had a design flaw, and before they knew it, the situation was out of their hands.
3. What are some of the most common and most deadly radioactive elements that were released in the the air from the Chernobyl explosion?
3A. Some of the most common and lethal radioactive elements released from Chernobyl were krypton and xenon gases, iodine, plutonium, and uranium. These are all very deadly, but the iodine was one of the biggest problems. It caused thyroid infections and cancer.
Haley C. asked: Why was the effected area of land "patchy"? Weather patterns contributed to "patchy" areas. There could be a sample taken that was ten meters apart and there would be a huge difference in the amount of nuclear waste in the soil. There is little evidence of why it was "patchy", but scientists say that it was a non normal way of spreading out.
Olivia asked: How far from the actual plant did the disaster spread? In the article, it said that some of the regions and countries that were effected are Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, Georgia, Poland, Sweden, Germany, Turkey and the list continues on. The United States and Japan also received measurable amounts of radiation. It spread out for thousands and thousands of miles.
Olivia also asked: Have other nuclear power plants melted down? If not, do you think this will help other plants to be extra careful?
On December 12, 1952, where was a partial meltdown of the uranium core at the Chalk River near Ottawa, Canada. With all the millions of gallons that were poured into the river, no one was injured. On October 1957, a fire damaged the core of plutonium. It is now called Sellafield, it sends clouds of radioactivity into the sky. There has been deaths from the leaked chemicals. On January 21, 1969, there as an experimental underground reactor in Switzerland, which releases a large amount of radiation into a cave. The cave in now sealed. America's worst nuclear accident occurred on March 28, 1979. There was a partial meltdown of a reactor. They were forced an evacuation of the residents after radioactive gas escaped into the atmosphere.France's most serious nuclear occurred November 1992.
Why would they do tests on something they knew was unstable? First, they just wanted to know, and second, there's a very small chance of it happening, and third, people just aren't so smart sometimes.
Why didn't they have an evac plan? Again, it was a very small chance that people would be so stupid, so they assumed they didn't need one.
Why didn't the government put a plan into place? People wouldn't have listened to it because they would fear for their lives.
It blew up after a failed experiment caused the workers to activate the emergency shut down mode, which led to a large jump in power and caused it to blow up. After 2 seconds, a larger explosion completely busted open the generator.
2.how many times past the normal maximum level was it?
The power of the generator was at 30 GW, 10 times higher than normal. The radiation levels became 100 times over recommended amounts.
3.how many explosions were there?
There were two different explosions. 4. How many days did the reactor burn?
Reactor 4 burned until May 10th, when it was finally put out.
Why didn't the automatic protection work? The automatic protection didn't work because it was too late anyways. It was described as having effects similar to when a driver stamps on the brake only to find the car accelerate. Also, from what I understand, to stop the machine, it put more eneregy in that made the poweer escalate rapidly to the point where it was just too much and it exploded, basically.
How radiated is Cherenobyl? The radiation of Chernobyl is 100 times that of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
How does the radiation affect people? The radiation affects people in many ways such as cancer. The cancer that I noticed that was mentioned s lot was thyroid cancer.
Caitlins answers to Jackson: 1. Ukraine, Romania, Check Republic, ect. Most of Europe. 2. Only 2, but 52 were in he hospital. 3. It's for when your thyroid malfunctions and it has to be removed.
Plutonium, uranium, mercury, and dioxin are the most dangerous chemicals known to man.
What was the estimated minimum of how much radioactivity was released?
All of the xenon gas was released and 50% of the iodine and caesium gases were released into the air out of the reactor.
How many people out of 400000 workers who toiled liquadators were ill?
An estimated 72,000 Russian Emergency Workers were studied for illness in the 1990's. Roughly 250 people fell ill due to the explosion and 31 died from the illness.
The entire town was abandoned when the explosion occurred. The radiation is still at a risk for human health, but not as much in 1986. Because of the ghost town, it is a completely deserted place for humans, but not animals. Some species have settled in Chernobyl, not effected by the lingering radiation in Ukraine. There is an archway being built and should be completed soon so that scientists can safely study Chernobyl today.
2: Did the public know about the dangers of living where they did?
Possibly, but most of the people that lived near the power plant did not see it as a threat, but a power source. Because people had a vague idea on what a power plant does, there was no worry for the citizens. The power plant became part of their lives.
3: Shouldn't more have been done to train the people working in a nuclear power plant?
More isn't exactly a good term here because what the workers needed to know was enough. There was a preparation for evacuation just in case if the power plant melted down and everyone working in the power plant was ready, just in case that happened. And, in this case, it did.
I answered three of Josh's questions: 1) how much radiation is still In the area? A: The extent of Chernobyl's effects are incalculable. 2) how did the incident start? A: The incident at chernobyl started when a worker tried to shut down an experiment they were running, but it instead caused a spike in the power output, causing a reactor vessel to rupture and a series of explosions to begin. 5) how many people were killed overall? A: Only 28 died as a direct result of the explosion. No one knows for sure how many people overall died, the numbers are inconsistent.
I answered three of Brady's questions. 1) If animals are living in the outside villages, why can't humans? Probably because the animals are unaware of the contamination, and because the Ukrainian government doesn't want the thriving animal populations being killed. 2) If we are getting footage of this area for documentaries, is it okay to stay there temporarily? No. The people making the documentary got special permission to film, so it's not like anyone can just go there without some sort of consent. 3) Has the radiation affected other parts of the world severely? Yes. A lot of radiation is in Belarus and Russia, as well as the Baltic countries (Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia) and the Nordic countries (Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Iceland, and Greenland.) Even countries like America and Japan were reported to be affected by this radiation.
1). What would happen if people came and destroyed the forest area (without anyone else knowing?) People would eventually figure out the destruction. Also people wouldn't really prefer going into a radioactive zone.
2). What similarities does this incident have with Love Canal? The Gulf oil spill? Love Canal and Chernobyl and the Gulf spill were all toxic spills and they were both human-made accidents.
3). Where exactly did this happen? Some sources say Ukraine others say Russia. It happened in Russia, Ukraine.
2.) If there was a hundred times more radiation than Hiroshima and Nagasaki (more than 100 roentgens an hour which is more than a person should get yearly for the power plant) so why did only 87 people die vs. the thousands at the bombings (answer)Well katie, many people did die. eventually thousand of people, just like in hiroshima and nagasaki, died. The even didn't explode, so much as combust, and spew radiation into the atmosphere. the people eventually died of radiation poisoning, and radiation sickness.
3.) "One corner of a field might be highly dangerous, while just a few yards away levels seemed low." Why was the blast so uneven? (Answer)Some areas received more radiation than others, because the radiation emitted was emitted from the atmosphere, and was carried in bulk to some areas, and singularly to others.(supposedly) 4.) "Up to 4,000 of these children had doses as high as 2,000 roentgen equivalents." How many roentgens does it take to kill a person? (answer) The tolerable level of roentgens per person varies considerably, That may be why some people received a level of roentgens that would have killed another person, but didn't die.
1. The most common illness was a reaction similar to AIDS, where the immune system was shut down because of a white blood cell deficiency.
2. The test was conducted to see how long the system would run on low power.
3. Chernobyl is considered the worst nuclear disaster in history because it was the largest and most destructive there had ever been, and has been so far. It shows the sort of danger that using nuclear energy comes with in the perfect manor.
A They were testing one of the reactors for low energy production, and it could not handle the stress.
Q 3. How did the disaster effect the people that lived in the area?
A It gave some birth defects, some got sick with diseases unknown, and many got sick with a syndrome know as Chernobyl aids. On top of that they were all forced to leave their homes because of the lingering contaminatoin.
Q 1. Where did the incident take place?
A It took place at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine.
4) Was the explosion really that dangerous or were these people just being paranoid?
5) Is it still dangerous in Pripyat?
Yes, it is still very dangerous. The area is still one of the most dangerously radioactive places in the entire world. The government of Ukrainian spends 5% of its budget on the effects of the explosions.
1) Was this caused by human error? Or by machinery? This was a human error. Humans created the faulty reactor, and humans ran a test that caused it to explode. 2) Is the radioactive dust still "alive"? The radioactive dust is still alive, and if something was to shift the area, such as an earthquake, the radioactive dust would shoot everywhere. 3) Was this known in the Western world right away? The incident was not known in the Western world right away, because the authorities had jammed foreign broadcasts.
What are the effects of cesium 137 and strontium 90? -An effect of cesium 137 is a higher risk of cancer. Bone tumors and tumors of blood cell forming organs are some effects of strontium 90.
WHy was the project going on in the middle of the night? -The test was going on in the middle of the night because that was when the testers were there.
Why was the power of if they knew it could be dangerous? -The power was off because they wanted to see how long the reactor could run without power.
1. Answer to Question 5: They called them Cat-astrophists 2. Answer to Question 2: The most often affected by the radiation was the thyroid gland. 3. Answer to Question 3: The official soviet figure was 90 million.
1. What was the design flaw in reactor 4? Reacted 4 was it could not work well without much power. It ended up generating to much steam and the generator went out of control. 2. What was the most common ailment that was caused by the explosion? The most common ailment was thyroid cancer. The number of people that developed this cancer more than tripled over the years. 3. What countries where effected by this disaster? Pretty much all of the countries in the world got some radioactive material spewed at them, but the main countries that were effected were Ukraine and parts of Russia.
I answered 3 of Sarah's questions:
ReplyDelete1. If the chemicals were different (I.e. Not nuclear) how would this affect the aftermath?
Any other type of power source could be devastating- nuclear being at the top. Oil and coal failures could create larger pollution outbreaks. There is always a danger of a power source failing.
2. Why could people not eat crops during the time of the explosion?
Nuclear radiation spreads very far and can affect the crops in the area. This could contaminate crops, therefore spreading radiation to people who eat said crops.
3. How could this have been prevented?
This could have been prevented if people cared to look after the plant. While people worked long shifts, the workers had to realize that nuclear power is very risky and must be contained at all times to prevent what happened.
Questions from Keara's blog.
ReplyDelete1. Should the Chernobyl scientists have been testing the nuclear plant in a populated area without warning the public? I don't think so because they should have known that they was a possibility of explosion or something else going wrong before continuing and not warning the people that they were testing.
2. Is it right for people to live in constant fear of the state of their health in this area? No because people shouldn't have to live in fear for their lives everyday thinking that they could get some nuclear sickness and die. If people everyday started to live in fear of their health it could possibly lead to an outbreak of insanity. People should be able to go on with their everyday task and not have to worry about some horrible nuclear sickness that could infect them and possible kill them.
3. Although nuclear power is one of our strongest sources, should we risk the health of people to have more power? I don't think that we should ever risk the lives of our people. If we want nuclear powers badly then we should do it somewhere were if there was problem such as an explosion and more toxins went into the air there should be no worry about people getting hurt and dying. If anyone should think that we should just out nuclear power plants near towns or cities knowing that anyway something could go terribly wrong, we shouldn't have any close enough to cause any real damage .
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ReplyDelete1) Why would the scientists test the experiment without removing citizens (as a precaution) not knowing the effects?
ReplyDeleteA: It is very probably that if the scientists behind the experiment disclosed all of the information, including the negative effects, the government and others would not fund the project. If people were afraid of the disaster or had been able to foresee it, they would have evacuated, leaving the reactors with no reason to be built since it generated 40% of Ukraine's power.
2) How did this effect other nuclear plants?
A: This brings awareness to the precautions of engineers and scientists working on other plants and raises awareness of the danger of nuclear power.
3) What are the effects when you turn off the safety system? What happens? Does the machine become unstable?
A: During the Chernobyl experiment, the scientists turned the power down, which at a low power rate, the reactor became unstable and created more steam. When scientists realized what was happening, they turned the emergency power on, but instead of stopping it, it accelerated the power and in about three seconds, exploded.
From the Reflection of Julian Bell.
ReplyDelete1. What date did the disaster occur on?
A.) April 26, 1986 was the date of the disaster.
2. What type of disaster occurred?
A.) A nuclear meltdown occurred in a plant North of Pripyat, Ukraine.
3. Approximately how many people fell ill during the time of the disaster?
A.) 203 people were hospitalized within the evacuation period and the long-term results are still ongoing.
Q: Why did scientists test it without removing citizens as a precaution?
ReplyDeleteA: Scientists most likely did not know that the nuclear spill would cause that many long term effects and didn't want to concern citizens with an unnecessary evacuation.
Q: Do you think that all countries were effected and helped cleanup?
A: Yes, I think many countries were effected, because when there is a world disaster, especially one in an ally or peaceful country, we take notice and try to help.
Q: How did this affect other nuclear plants?
A: It may have affected other nuclear plants by giving them a warning that this could happen in any one of them. It probably also made citizens living near plants concerned and upset with them.
Lucy's Answers To Anni's Questions:
ReplyDeleteHow many people were affected by this disaster?
Over 7 million people were effected. The most heavily affected areas were in Belarus, Russia and Ukraine. However, sheep in northern England and reindeer in Lapland had to be killed as they had been irradiated. ~ http://www.friendsofchernobylcenters.org/?Facts_about_Chernobyl
How many people were killed by this explosion?
The initial explosion resulted in the death of two workers. Twenty-eight of the firemen and emergency clean-up workers died in the first three months after the explosion from Acute Radiation Sickness and one of cardiac arrest. ~http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Features/Chernobyl-15/cherno-faq.shtml
Will people ever be able to live there again?
One may certainly visit the Chernobyl area, including even the exclusion zone, which is a 30 kilometre radius surrounding the plant, all of whose reactors are now closed. Although some of the radioactive isotopes released into the atmosphere still linger (such as Strontium-90 and Caesium-137), they are at tolerable exposure levels for limited periods of time. ~ http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Features/Chernobyl-15/cherno-faq.shtml
3 of Hannah's questions
ReplyDelete1. Why couldn't residents of nearby countries eat their crops?
ReplyDeleteAnswer: They could not eat their crops because it was contaminated by chemicals in the air that were released with the nuclear explosion.
2. What date did this disaster occur?
Answer: The Chernobyl disaster occurred April 26, 1986.
3. What is the name of the abandoned city?
Answer: The abandoned city is Pripyat, Ukraine.
Why where the scientists not informed that the reactor was unstable?
ReplyDeleteThe scientists did know that the reactor becomes unstable when the amount of power and amount of steam released is changed but, by the time they pressed the emergency stop button it was too late.
Why was this not prevented?
The accident was not prevented because the safety equipment was turned off so they could conduct tests. Because the safety equipment was turned off, a large amount of steam built up, which blew the top off of the building, which caused the disaster.
Why did they put soldiers at risk of radiation to stand guard?
The made soldiers stand guard to keep people out of contaminated areas and to allow authorized people in and out.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIn Response to Jonathan's Questions
ReplyDelete1. The area around a nuclear reactor (outside of 30km) was
contaminated with radioactive materials as well, how is wild life
living with great health?
1-answer. I think that the wild life have either evolved in a way that
they aren't affected by the radioactivity or they know which areas to
stay away from. It could very well be that the animals do get sick,
but then the healthy numbers wouldn't be able to be explained. The
radioactive materials might not be close to animal habitation so the
animals aren't affected, also.
3. Will the families that have been separated ever be able to reunite?
3-answer. I do think that if the families really valued being together, they would find a way to contact each other. If I was separated from my family, I would try to find them, non-stop.
5. Will it ever be safe to inhabit that area again?
5-answer. I think this area will always be an unsafe area to some people. Yes, it is possible to clean the area up, but the memories are the reasons that people won't visit. You can erase all signs of bad things, but you can't erase memories.
Zach's answers to Lucy's questions:
ReplyDelete1. Was it really just a few worker's faults for the explosion or was there more to it?
It was not just a few workers fault. It was several people that made a big mistake and caused the plant to explode. Many of those people were put in jail for their doings.
2. Will it ever be safe for humans to live in again? If so, when?
As of right now, the population of the city is 0. It has been abandoned since 1986. I do not think that people will go back for a long time because the history of the whole town is not safe to people. They do not feel safe in that town.
3. What parts of Ukraine were effected?
The part of Ukraine that was most effect was Pripyat', but It was widespread. Luckily, the explosion was did not harm the capital, Kiev.
Responce to Andi's questions.
ReplyDelete1. 30,000 of the 400,000 fell ill.
2. 5% of Ukraine's power is generated by 2 reactors.
3. There were about 800 burial sites within 300 km of Chernobyl.
2) How was the Chernobyl disaster caused?
ReplyDeleteA: A nuclear reactor of the nuclear variety has a problem with becoming unstable when run at low energy and the reactor blew it's top.
4) How many square kilometers were contaminated? Which countries were affected?
A: The particles were so horrible they even fell on the far away countries like the U.S. And Japan.
3) How much more radiation was let out during the disaster than the Hiroshima bombing? How much radiation was let out?
A: The disaster equalled the amount of radiation from the nuclear strike at least. No one will ever know how much radiation was actually ever let out but the Soviet measurement of 90 million curies represents the minimum amount of radiation.
What other countries were affected? The other countries that were affected along with Ukraine were Belarus, Russia, Georgia, Poland, Sweden, Germany, Turkey. In addition, Poland, Germany, Austria, and Hungary as well as Ukraine their crops and milk were so contaminated they had to be destroyed.
ReplyDeleteWhat type of disaster occurred? A radioactive nuclear meltdown explosion. The destroyed reactor caused hundreds of times more radiation than was produced by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
What is the name (correct spelling too) of the abandoned city? The name of the abandoned city was Pripyat. Pripyat, a once vibrant city of 45,000, was home to many workers fro the Chernobyl plant. It was evacuated after the accident and remains deserted.
Natalie's Questions :D
ReplyDelete1. Were the operators the ones that were jailed?
A. Yes they were. It says in the 1st paragraph of the article that some of the operators and the people that were on shift at the time were jailed for their role in the nuclear explosion, even though they never admitted they were guilty.
2. Did people know the dangers of running the tests on the reactor?
A. No they did not know that if they did tests on the reactor that it would cause a radioactive disaster, and they didn't know the magnitude of the power in the reactor or how it would react to those types of tests.
3. If the citizens send their children and themselves after they are exposed to radiation, can't they pass it on to more people?
A. Yes they can pass it on to other people, especially their kids, because radioactivity can stay in your body and can be passes on by genetics. Radioactivity has also been known to cause cancers and tumors which may also be passed down to your kids and other generations.
2) How was the Chornobyl disaster caused?
ReplyDeleteThe Chernobyl accident in 1986 was the result of a flawed reactor design that was operated with inadequately trained personnel.
4) How many square kilometers where contaminated? What countries where affected?
The plume drifted over large parts of the western Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, and Northern Europe.
5) What is being done to stop the radiation from spreading?
From Kean's Blog:
ReplyDelete1. Was there any other cities that were affected badly by this?
Yes, there were several other cities affected. The blast was even felt in Switzerland, but it was not as deadly. They actually had higher radioactivity levels.
2. If you were in Chernobyl at the time of the explosion what what you sacrifice? for example; pets, clothes, extra food, etc.
I would sacrifice every non-living thing. I would not have been able to live with myself if a pet of mine were to have to suffer death. It would break me completely. I would never forgive myself, and I know I would be the cause of a life that will have ended.
3. If you were a parent of a child or children would you risk splitting up or wait until you could all go together?
I would spilt up, even if we would never see each other again. I would rather speed out than stay and have higher risks of death and disease. I would set up a meeting point and time, if I could.
those were from austins blog
ReplyDeleteI answered three of Haley L's questions.
ReplyDeleteWhat were the symptoms of Chernobyl AIDS?
Some symptoms included fatigue, apathy, and a decreased number of natural killer cells in the blood.
How much has Thyroid Cancer increased?
The disaster will cause up to 50,000 new cases of thyroid cancer among young people living in the area.The rate of the cancer in ages 15-18 is also three times higher than it was before the dissaster took place.
How much graphite was burned in the ten day period?
Hundreds of tons of graphite that had served as a moderator in the reactor burned for 10 days.
Zach's questions
ReplyDelete1. What could have caused this disaster?
It was caused by a group of engineers that were seeing how long the nuclear reactor would go without power. Istead of slowing down, it's power increased immensely and blew up.
2. What could be done to prevent this from happening again?
Well since it was caused by people being irresponsible if everyone did their job like they were supposed to and not do experiment in the workplace that could have bad effects.
5. Are there any people that are still affected by the nuclear effects today?
Yes about 100,000 people are living with higher radiation than normal.
I answered 3 questions from Chloe's blog.
ReplyDeleteIf you came in contact with the contaminated milk ans crops, what would happen?
If you came in direct contact with contaminated milk and crops, you would probably get very sick and die if you ate them or touched them. Many animals came across this unfortunate fate.
Why and how did the explosion happen?
The explosion happened because the people who worked there were conducting an experiment to see how long the reactors would run without power, but a design flaw in the number four reactor, made it unstable when running on low power and it exploded.
Will the Chernobyl area ever be safe for humans to re-inhabit it?
Chernobyl could possibly be safe to re-inhabit, but the reactor would have to be covered up again which would take 5 years and $300 million. Animals have now re-inhabited the land, so we know that it is not contaminated or at least not contaminated enough to harm them.
Why and how did the explosion happen?
ReplyDeleteThey were testing a new reactor and had to turn all of the safety equipment off so it wouldnt interfere with the power, it did not go as well as they expected and gas leaked and the reactor blew up.
Are people that were effected by the chernobyl explosion still efeected today.
Yes many of them died a couple days after they helped the clean up or the ones that were there. They absorbed 500 times the limit that the public should absorb in a year. The ones that lived are effected by cancer and other dieseses to this day.
From Chloe's blog:
ReplyDelete1. Why and how did the explosion happen? A reactor had a design flaw that causes it to be unstable at low power. Someone tried to shut down the reactor because it was at low power, but it was too late. It resulted in two explosions.
2. Are people today still being effected by the disaster? If so, how? Yes, because it is still one of the most dangerous places on Earth. 800 burial sites are filled with highly radioactive waste.
3. Will the Chornobyl area ever be safe for humans to re-inhabit? No. It is largely uninhabited and it probably always will be.
(Una's) Chernobyl 3 questions
ReplyDelete1. Did Chernobyl affect the fall of the Soviet Union?
1A. Yes, Chernobyl affected the fall of the Soviet Union. When the nuclear accident happened it cost the Soviet billions of dollars. It was not doing well to begin with so having to evacuate all those people and resettle them helped to quickly break down the Soviet Union.
2. What are the events that happened before the nuclear accident that late April night in 1986?
2A. Before the nuclear explosion happened, some operators were performing a test to see how the generator would work without power. This was not a good idea because the generator had a design flaw, and before they knew it, the situation was out of their hands.
3. What are some of the most common and most deadly radioactive elements that were released in the the air from the Chernobyl explosion?
3A. Some of the most common and lethal radioactive elements released from Chernobyl were krypton and xenon gases, iodine, plutonium, and uranium. These are all very deadly, but the iodine was one of the biggest problems. It caused thyroid infections and cancer.
Haley C. asked:
ReplyDeleteWhy was the effected area of land "patchy"?
Weather patterns contributed to "patchy" areas. There could be a sample taken that was ten meters apart and there would be a huge difference in the amount of nuclear waste in the soil. There is little evidence of why it was "patchy", but scientists say that it was a non normal way of spreading out.
Olivia asked:
How far from the actual plant did the disaster spread?
In the article, it said that some of the regions and countries that were effected are Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, Georgia, Poland, Sweden, Germany, Turkey and the list continues on. The United States and Japan also received measurable amounts of radiation. It spread out for thousands and thousands of miles.
Olivia also asked:
Have other nuclear power plants melted down? If not, do you think this will help other plants to be extra careful?
On December 12, 1952, where was a partial meltdown of the uranium core at the Chalk River near Ottawa, Canada. With all the millions of gallons that were poured into the river, no one was injured. On October 1957, a fire damaged the core of plutonium. It is now called Sellafield, it sends clouds of radioactivity into the sky. There has been deaths from the leaked chemicals. On January 21, 1969, there as an experimental underground reactor in Switzerland, which releases a large amount of radiation into a cave. The cave in now sealed. America's worst nuclear accident occurred on March 28, 1979. There was a partial meltdown of a reactor. They were forced an evacuation of the residents after radioactive gas escaped into the atmosphere.France's most serious nuclear occurred November 1992.
How many people immediately died from Chernobyl?
ReplyDeleteFour workers died instantly.
What will a Thyroid Operation cure?
Cancer in the thyroid gland.
Pripyat had a population of how much before it was destroyed?
14,000 Residents
Why would they do tests on something they knew was unstable? First, they just wanted to know, and second, there's a very small chance of it happening, and third, people just aren't so smart sometimes.
ReplyDeleteWhy didn't they have an evac plan? Again, it was a very small chance that people would be so stupid, so they assumed they didn't need one.
Why didn't the government put a plan into place? People wouldn't have listened to it because they would fear for their lives.
1.How did it blow up?
ReplyDeleteIt blew up after a failed experiment caused the workers to activate the emergency shut down mode, which led to a large jump in power and caused it to blow up. After 2 seconds, a larger explosion completely busted open the generator.
2.how many times past the normal maximum level was it?
The power of the generator was at 30 GW, 10 times higher than normal. The radiation levels became 100 times over recommended amounts.
3.how many explosions were there?
There were two different explosions.
4. How many days did the reactor burn?
Reactor 4 burned until May 10th, when it was finally put out.
5.What was the exact date of the incident?
April 26, 1986, in the night.
I answered Chri's question.
ReplyDeleteWhy didn't the automatic protection work?
The automatic protection didn't work because it was too late anyways. It was described as having effects similar to when a driver stamps on the brake only to find the car accelerate. Also, from what I understand, to stop the machine, it put more eneregy in that made the poweer escalate rapidly to the point where it was just too much and it exploded, basically.
How radiated is Cherenobyl?
The radiation of Chernobyl is 100 times that of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
How does the radiation affect people?
The radiation affects people in many ways such as cancer. The cancer that I noticed that was mentioned s lot was thyroid cancer.
Caitlins answers to Jackson:
ReplyDelete1. Ukraine, Romania, Check Republic, ect. Most of Europe.
2. Only 2, but 52 were in he hospital.
3. It's for when your thyroid malfunctions and it has to be removed.
I answered Brad P.'s questions.
ReplyDeleteWhat is the most toxic element ever known?
Plutonium, uranium, mercury, and dioxin are the most dangerous chemicals known to man.
What was the estimated minimum of how much radioactivity was released?
All of the xenon gas was released and 50% of the iodine and caesium gases were released into the air out of the reactor.
How many people out of 400000 workers who toiled liquadators were ill?
An estimated 72,000 Russian Emergency Workers were studied for illness in the 1990's. Roughly 250 people fell ill due to the explosion and 31 died from the illness.
From Catlin's Blog
ReplyDelete1: What effects still linger today?
The entire town was abandoned when the explosion occurred. The radiation is still at a risk for human health, but not as much in 1986. Because of the ghost town, it is a completely deserted place for humans, but not animals. Some species have settled in Chernobyl, not effected by the lingering radiation in Ukraine. There is an archway being built and should be completed soon so that scientists can safely study Chernobyl today.
2: Did the public know about the dangers of living where they did?
Possibly, but most of the people that lived near the power plant did not see it as a threat, but a power source. Because people had a vague idea on what a power plant does, there was no worry for the citizens. The power plant became part of their lives.
3: Shouldn't more have been done to train the people working in a nuclear power plant?
More isn't exactly a good term here because what the workers needed to know was enough. There was a preparation for evacuation just in case if the power plant melted down and everyone working in the power plant was ready, just in case that happened. And, in this case, it did.
I answered three of Josh's questions:
ReplyDelete1) how much radiation is still In the area?
A: The extent of Chernobyl's effects are incalculable.
2) how did the incident start?
A: The incident at chernobyl started when a worker tried to shut down an experiment they were running, but it instead caused a spike in the power output, causing a reactor vessel to rupture and a series of explosions to begin.
5) how many people were killed overall?
A: Only 28 died as a direct result of the explosion. No one knows for sure how many people overall died, the numbers are inconsistent.
I answered three of Brady's questions.
ReplyDelete1) If animals are living in the outside villages, why can't humans?
Probably because the animals are unaware of the contamination, and because the Ukrainian government doesn't want the thriving animal populations being killed.
2) If we are getting footage of this area for documentaries, is it okay to stay there temporarily?
No. The people making the documentary got special permission to film, so it's not like anyone can just go there without some sort of consent.
3) Has the radiation affected other parts of the world severely?
Yes. A lot of radiation is in Belarus and Russia, as well as the Baltic countries (Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia) and the Nordic countries (Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Iceland, and Greenland.) Even countries like America and Japan were reported to be affected by this radiation.
Rory's Chernobyl questions:
ReplyDelete1). What would happen if people came and destroyed the forest area (without anyone else knowing?)
People would eventually figure out the destruction. Also people wouldn't really prefer going into a radioactive zone.
2). What similarities does this incident have with Love Canal? The Gulf oil spill?
Love Canal and Chernobyl and the Gulf spill were all toxic spills and they were both human-made accidents.
3). Where exactly did this happen? Some sources say Ukraine others say Russia.
It happened in Russia, Ukraine.
2.) If there was a hundred times more radiation than Hiroshima and Nagasaki (more than 100 roentgens an hour which is more than a person should get yearly for the power plant) so why did only 87 people die vs. the thousands at the bombings
ReplyDelete(answer)Well katie, many people did die. eventually thousand of people, just like in hiroshima and nagasaki, died. The even didn't explode, so much as combust, and spew radiation into the atmosphere. the people eventually died of radiation poisoning, and radiation sickness.
3.) "One corner of a field might be highly dangerous, while just a few yards away levels seemed low." Why was the blast so uneven?
(Answer)Some areas received more radiation than others, because the radiation emitted was emitted from the atmosphere, and was carried in bulk to some areas, and singularly to others.(supposedly)
4.) "Up to 4,000 of these children had doses as high as 2,000 roentgen equivalents." How many roentgens does it take to kill a person?
(answer) The tolerable level of roentgens per person varies considerably, That may be why some people received a level of roentgens that would have killed another person, but didn't die.
I answered Jacob's first 3 questions.
ReplyDelete1. The most common illness was a reaction similar to AIDS, where the immune system was shut down because of a white blood cell deficiency.
2. The test was conducted to see how long the system would run on low power.
3. Chernobyl is considered the worst nuclear disaster in history because it was the largest and most destructive there had ever been, and has been so far. It shows the sort of danger that using nuclear energy comes with in the perfect manor.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteQ 2. What caused the explosion to happen?
ReplyDeleteA They were testing one of the reactors for low energy production, and it could not handle the stress.
Q 3. How did the disaster effect the people that lived in the area?
A It gave some birth defects, some got sick with diseases unknown, and many got sick with a syndrome know as Chernobyl aids. On top of that they were all forced to leave their homes because of the lingering contaminatoin.
Q 1. Where did the incident take place?
A It took place at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine.
I answered three of Nandu's questions.
ReplyDelete4) Was the explosion really that dangerous or were these people just being paranoid?
5) Is it still dangerous in Pripyat?
Yes, it is still very dangerous. The area is still one of the most dangerously radioactive places in the entire world. The government of Ukrainian spends 5% of its budget on the effects of the explosions.
6) How far did the radiation spread?
In response to Luke:
ReplyDelete1) Was this caused by human error? Or by machinery?
This was a human error. Humans created the faulty reactor, and humans ran a test that caused it to explode.
2) Is the radioactive dust still "alive"?
The radioactive dust is still alive, and if something was to shift the area, such as an earthquake, the radioactive dust would shoot everywhere.
3) Was this known in the Western world right away?
The incident was not known in the Western world right away, because the authorities had jammed foreign broadcasts.
I answered three of Melanie's questions.
ReplyDelete1. How many explosions were there?
There were two explosions in the reactor's core that, together, collapsed the building housing it.
2. When did the explosion/explosions occur?
The explosions occurred at 1:23:43 AM, on April 26, 1986 when the core surged to 100 times its maximum level.
3. What type of cancer increased due to the iodine radiation collecting there?
Thyroid cancer increased, especially in Ukraine, by about 8-fold.
I answered Michala's Questions
ReplyDeleteWhat are the effects of cesium 137 and strontium 90?
ReplyDelete-An effect of cesium 137 is a higher risk of cancer. Bone tumors and tumors of blood cell forming organs are some effects of strontium 90.
WHy was the project going on in the middle of the night?
-The test was going on in the middle of the night because that was when the testers were there.
Why was the power of if they knew it could be dangerous?
-The power was off because they wanted to see how long the reactor could run without power.
I answered Liam's questions.
ReplyDeleteKeilen's questions
ReplyDelete1. Answer to Question 5: They called them Cat-astrophists
2. Answer to Question 2: The most often affected by the radiation was the thyroid gland.
3. Answer to Question 3: The official soviet figure was 90 million.
I am answering three of Eli's questions.
ReplyDelete1. What was the design flaw in reactor 4?
Reacted 4 was it could not work well without much power. It ended up generating to much steam and the generator went out of control.
2. What was the most common ailment that was caused by the explosion?
The most common ailment was thyroid cancer. The number of people that developed this cancer more than tripled over the years.
3. What countries where effected by this disaster?
Pretty much all of the countries in the world got some radioactive material spewed at them, but the main countries that were effected were Ukraine and parts of Russia.