Attacks on nuclear plants in Ukraine, could a catastrophe occur? | today’s news

A little over a week has passed since the Kremlin ordered an invasion UkraineWhen the foreign minister of that country posted a message on Twitter that caused panic in the world: “The Russian army is firing at the center.” ZaporizhiaEurope’s largest nuclear power plant. If it exploded, it would be ten times bigger than Chernobyl! Since then, Ukraine’s nuclear power plants have become a strategic point for Russia, turning energy (and plant safety) into a deterrent in the midst of war. Could these explosions spell disaster?

Russian forces have occupied the site since March 4, but did not start using it to launch artillery attacks until a month ago, according to data from The New York Times. This is after the arrival on the battlefield of HIMARS Systems, which are multiple rocket launchers mounted on lightly armored vehicles. The situation was complicated this week when the plant was attacked by missiles that landed near a storage area for radioactive materials. Ukraine and Russia They accuse each other of the attacks.

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“I repeat that the situation is serious,” said the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, on the same day. Soon after that attack, the Ukrainian factory operator, Energoatom, announced a new Russian bombing near one of the plant’s six reactors, damaging many of the radiation sensors. This new round of attacks began on August 5, when Energoatom reported that after the Russian missile launches, operators had disconnected a reactor from the power grid.

the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, took the alert to another level: “The world must not forget about Chernobyl. That disaster occurred after an explosion in a reactor. The Zaporizhia plant has six power units. ” But experts say there are many errors in Zelensky’s warnings, not least because as of August 1, only three of the six reactors were active.

Chernobyl vs. Zaporizhia, can it be compared?

At this point, we have to get down to the basics: How does the nuclear plant currently operate and why does it explode? “It is a large boiler, it works by producing water vapor which, when released under high pressure, drives a turbine and generates power,” explained Diego Torres, adding that the reactor produces high temperatures, “if not properly controlled, it can be obtained to separate Water is reduced to its basic components, i.e. oxygen and hydrogen are separated.The latter is a powerful explosive that can produce, with heat and oxygen, an explosion not initially nuclear, but in case Chernobylcausing radioactive materials to enter the air.

And I went outdoors precisely because of what Benjamín Leal-Acevedo, who is in charge of radiation safety at the UNAM Institute for Nuclear Sciences, explained to us: There was no good safety system. “The Russian construction of Chernobyl did not think of a concrete or concrete shield on the outside. Whereas in Zaporizhia the core is inside a steel vessel and has a concrete shield. Not to mention the construction of the building which is also used as an additional shield.”

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Experts commented on Politician That even in the worst case, if the cooling systems in Zaporizhia failed and caused the reactor to melt, it could cause serious damage locally. Leon Sezel, President of the European Nuclear Society, estimated a radius of 30 kilometers. “It would be a tragedy for the local population, however, for us in Europe, it would be an insignificant event, in terms of consequences for health or anything else in the environment,” Sizel said in that medium.

Another major difference? This time the threat comes from outside. These factories are protected and resist the attack of missiles of a certain caliber. “It has to be a continuous and direct bombardment to do any damage,” Torres said. Leal-Acevedo commented the same: “Some experts from the UK commented that ships in Ukrainian reactors would resist an attack with a missile that would not reach the heart.”

So there is no danger in Zaporizhia?

Yes, and it is overwhelming for two factors: the presence of Russian troops and the attacks on some points of the nuclear plant. Satellite images from Planet Labs PBC, published by media NPR, show a fire near a substation, as well as an explosion after a missile attack a few meters from a site where old nuclear fuel is stored.

The severity depends on the affected site after the attack. For example, bombing a plant substation with a voltage of 750 kV is dangerous because it will leave nuclear reactors without this current. Something Edwin Lyman, an expert on nuclear proliferation and terrorism, told NPR. “Nuclear reactors require continuous circulation of water through their cores to keep them cold, which in turn requires electrically powered pumps,” the expert commented.

Yes, there is a Plan B, which is a backup diesel generator (in case of a power outage) that can supply water for a while, but for this the plant requires good maintenance.

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Another dangerous scenario is an attack on the place where they keep the already used fuel. As they use this fuel, it becomes nuclear waste that is no longer needed and is stored. What is the problem of attacking this site? Diego Torres commented that it does not have the same security as a nuclear reactor, and that an explosion could release this pollutant into the air.

Fact: Some residues, because they do not emit radiation, are not harmful. However, others emit radiation for several decades. Example? Cesium-137 and strontium-90 have a half-life of 30 years. “These kinds of elements are responsible for having no-go zones around Chernobyl,” Torres said, “other danger?” That Russian soldiers do not allow technicians to work in the reactors, according to Torres. “Or that in one of these attacks there was a mass death of the operators responsible for the plant; in an emergency situation, the human factor is key,” the analyst added.

Something Edwin Lyman, an expert on nuclear proliferation and terrorism, told NPR. The fact that Russian forces are actually stationed inside the plant will certainly affect operations. “This puts pressure on the Ukrainian employees at the plant,” the expert commented. data Politician It turned out that there were about 500 Russian soldiers in Zaporizhia and 50 pieces of heavy equipment.

Currently, American observers have detected no evidence of increased radiation levels at the plant.

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