arlan (01/14/83)
Although this is not directly related to Space, I must reply in the same net.group where the discussion began--originally commentary on the Soviet nuclear-powered satellite's imminent fall. Some mail has asked me about the Soviet incident that contaminated thousands of square miles with nuclear materials. The incident occurred in the 1950s, and has been written about by an exiled scientist, one of the Mevedyev (sp?) brothers. It was also the subject of a PBS (NOVA?) telecast a few years ago. Seems as if our socialist friends just piled the stuff up in a hole or three somewhere behind a factory in the Urals and eventually it got close enough to critical to spew crap out explosively, killing many and contaminating thousands or more. Crops and animals died and those lucky enough to have survived were permanently moved out. Compare the media reaction to this minor incident, with the quiet, reserved discussions about the incredibly horrible, disastrous, and thoroughly unforgiveable capitalistic conspiracy at infamous Three Mile Island. Doubt- less those who accuse me of living in a cave will take issue and say that the Soviets might conceivably be guilty of a misdemeanor, but the United States should forever be ashamed for the TMI incident. (As an aside: a Middle East-type engineer who once worked with the Soviets building an N-plant, told me that their safety precautions, as well as their manners, were non-existent.) Flame if you wish, but don't flame RED. =arlan=abi/indy
sher (01/16/83)
To continue a discussion that probably should be in net.politics but what the hell, the main reason that US newsmen cover American nuclear mishaps is that if the reactor several miles north of New York City blows up, endangering the entire 2*10**7+ people in the metropolitan area, my mother father sister brother and various other relatives and friends will be endangered. If all the reactors in Russia blow up simultaneously many million Russians will be endangered. Now which possibility is more important to me? =David Sher (oftimes ai project)
bcw (01/18/83)
From: Bruce C. Wright @ Duke University Re: Soviet nuclear waste disaster There is copious documentation for this disaster; there have been articles in New Scientist especially about it, though I have seen articles in other publications (Science? Don't remember offhand). The only nit is that it really didn't get close to critical (or at least is not widely believed to have gotten close to critical), it's just that the heat of decomposition got so high that it disintegrated its dump site ... Bruce C. Wright @ Duke University