Hitchhiker's Guide to Nuclear (Blog and Podcast)

Hi guys!Once again, we've been away for a while but we're back, stomping onto the scene with a Gojira-size of a show!!This month we discuss recent developments in Russo-Iranian relations, nuclear fusion at ITER, the ramifications for nuclear after the recent European elections and the new Godzilla movie (SPOILERS!!).We've got two new speakers on the show, Mark Williams and Liz Hope-Parker. Along the way we discover rollercoasters like breaking down, Godzilla may be a radioactive diabetic and Kate is campaigning for Downing Street.(Apologies, I've noticed, only after uploading, that our theme tune has played over the music in one section)Enjoy!!!Download PodcastThe song played on this months show is 'Charming' by Derek Clegg.(Charming (Derek Clegg) / CC BY-NC-SA 3.0)

Hi guys,It seems like a lifetime ago since we've posted a new episode on the site and, finally, a new show is here! This month we discuss what we believe to be the top five news stories from 2013; including Iran, hijinks at Hinkley Point, repository retractions, nuclear waste resigned to Davy Jones' locker and a review of the film "Pandora's Promise".Enjoy the show guys!!Gunth  Download Podcast The song played on the show is called 'Beautiful Surprise' by The Twin Atlas.(Beautiful Surpise (The Twin Atlas) / CC BY-NC-SA 3.0)   

Hullo everyone!Hope you have been soaking up the rarity that is the British summer season!! How about listening to this months show whilst having an impromptu BBQ or when sipping on a lukewarm Pimms in a ridonkulously overcrowded beer garden? We've certainly got everything covered! We'll be talking about EDF vs the Government, 1970s Anglo-German waste policy (or lack thereof), a mysterious facility in Germany and North Korea! Hope you enjoy the show!Gunth (NB. Correction - I mention America financing Al-Qaeda during the 1980s Afghan Conflict. It was, in fact, the Mujahideen which received weapons and training. Splinter groups of the Mujahideen later formed Al-Qaeda). Download Podcast

By Guest Blogger, Nathan Edge This month Nathan Edge discusses the nature and operation of nuclear devices being used in unmanned space operations. As an aside, I can't believe I wasn't the first person to type into Google, "nuclear engine...USS Enterprise"?! Nathan provides links to sites for more information throughout the piece. Anyway, on with the article!-------------------------------------------------Nuclear power isn’t just applicable to terrestrial electricity generation; it has also been used in space travel since 1961 – whereby it is still a tremendous source of potential for propulsion mechanisms. Many well known space vehicles such as the deep space probes Voyagers 1 & 2 – which are over 18,000,000,000 and 15,000,000,000 km from Earth respectively – rely on nuclear power. It is even being used on NASA’s Curiosity Rover, which made a spectacular touchdown on Mars last year.Voyager 2. One of the most distant man-made objects in existence.The popularised spacecraft don’t actually use conventional nuclear reactors. Radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) - which harness Plutonium-238 as fuel - are the primary propulsion source. These so-called “nuclear batteries” exploit the principle that plutonium undergoes alpha-decay to produce heat. This is subsequently converted in to electricity using thermoelectric generators. Since they have no moving parts, RTGs are very reliable; the RTG on Voyager 2 has worked continuously since 1977, and is expected to continue working until 2025.A general RTG configurationThis is not to say, however, traditional nuclear reactors have not also been used in space operations in the past … albeit with some serious modifications. For example, the Soviet RORSAT satellites used 90% enriched uranium fuel as a power source. The safety implications of using such a system in earth orbit are obvious, and any fears of utilising such a technology are not exactly unfounded. The nuclear-powered Cosmos 954 satellite, for instance, fell into Canada in 1978 after a systems failure, distributing radioactive debris over 124,000 square kilometres. Due to events like these, it is likely that any future reactors will be confined to deep space like RTGs. However, this does not mean that they will only be used for unmanned exploration probes. NASA has its eyes on a manned Mars mission, but traditional chemical rockets would take six to seven months to reach Mars. A 1MW fission reactor powering 100-400 kW electric ion thrusters would take 3 months, thus limiting the health degradation astronauts face on long space journeys.Modern RTGs are designed to survive the possible accidents which could befall it during operation, including propellant fires during launch and land/water impacts. Reassuringly, RTGs cannot explode like nuclear weapons: the plutonium associated with weapons is Pu-239, not Pu-238. A similar safety feature which has been specified for nuclear reactor propulsion tech is that they are not activated until they are confirmed to have reached space successfully. Ultimately, this is to ensure fission fragments and other components of nuclear waste are not present if failure occurs during launch. Space: The future of waste disposal?Lastly, when using an RTG some additional thought must be applied to the disposal of the spacecraft when they come to the end of their working life. This is not just a nuclear issue: it’s important not to disturb any areas which potentially harbour extraterrestrial life. For example the RTG-powered Galileo spacecraft was sent into Jupiter’s atmosphere and destroyed to stop it crashing into a potential ocean under Europa’s crust. The disposal of RTGs and future nuclear reactors actually touch on one of the more outlandish proposals for dealing with nuclear waste: firing it out of the solar system.In short, the space and nuclear industry have a surprising legacy: nuclear power has already been used successfully for near-earth and deep space missions in the past, and its use has continued into the cutting edge-missions of today. Only time will tell whether or not it is the key to future exploration, both manned and unmanned, into our universe.DOCUMENT LINKS (IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE)NASA, 2013 Where are the Voyagers? [online]. Available at: http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/where/index.html[Accessed 02/02/2013]Atmos, J. 2012. Curiosity rover made near-perfect landing [online]. Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-19219782[Accessed 02/02/2013]Snyder, G.J. Small Thermoelectric Generators [pdf]. Available at: http://www.electrochem.org/dl/interface/fal/fal08/fal08_p54-56.pdf[Accessed 02/02/2013]NASA, 2013. Voyager – Spacecraft Lifetime [online].Available at: http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/spacecraft/spacecraftlife.html[Accessed 03/02/2013]Encyclopaedia of Science, 2013. RORSAT (Radar Ocean Reconnaissance Satellite [online]. Available at: http://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/R/RORSAT.html[Accessed 03/02/2013]HackCanada, 2013. Cosmos 954 Satellite Crash [online]. Available at: http://www.hackcanada.com/canadian/other/cosmos954.html[Accessed 10/02/2013]King, L, 2012. Manned Mars mission still on track [online]. Available at: http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/tech/story/2012/09/12/manned-mars-mission-still-on-track/57767950/1[Accessed 11/02/2013]Rousseau, I.M. 2007. Analysis of a High Temperature Supercritical Brayton Cycle for Space Exploration [pdf]. Available at: http://web.mit.edu/rsi/www/pdfs/papers/2005/2005-ianr.pdf[Accessed 01/10/2012]Discovery, 2013. Known effects of long-term space flights on the human body [online]. Available at: http://www.racetomars.ca/mars/article_effects.jsp[Accessed 10/02/2013].US Department of Energy, 1982. Nuclear Safety Criteria and Specifications for Space Nuclear Reactors [pdf]. Available at: http://www.fas.org/nuke/space/osnp-1.pdf[Accessed 20/02/2013].NASA, 2013. Solar system exploration  -Galileo Legacy Site [online]. Available at: http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/galileo/[Accessed 21/02/2013].The Space Review, 2013. Nuclear waste in space? [online]. Available at: http://www.thespacereview.com/article/437/1[Accessed 22/02/2013]IMAGESSpace Today Online, 2011. Voyagers are leaving the Solar System [online]. Available at: http://www.spacetoday.org/SolSys/Voyagers20years.html[Accessed 02/02/2013].Wikipedia, Radioisotope thermoelectric generator [online]. Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioisotope_thermoelectric_generator[Accessed 02/02/2013]Gunter’s Space Page, 2013. US-A[online]. Available at: http://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/us-a.htm[Accessed 05/02/2013]The Space Review, 2013. Nuclear waste in space? [online]. Available at: http://www.thespacereview.com/article/437/1[Accessed 22/02/2013]

It's finally here!! Apologies once again for the delay in getting this out to you all. With that said, on this months show we discover Steve has an affection for Destiny's Child, Gunth likes chatting about Caroline Lucas (again) and wind turbines are prone to falling over.......in the wind. The news stories are the Centrica pullout, the Cumbria nuclear waste repository pullout and Sellafield running up a rather large bill.Download Podcast

On this months show we discuss what we love and loathe about this festive time of year. We quickly discover that Lizzie lives in fear of brussel sprouts, presents are always better when bundled into a pillow case and Mike detests mulled wine?!!!Our guest speakers on this months show are Lizzie, Mike Daly, Nick and Stephen. Merry Christmas everyone!!!Download Podcast

On this months show we discuss a little problem called nuclear waste and what the UK are doing to solve it in Cumbria. On our magical mystery tour (terrible film by the way) we discover Toby wasn't the only one who liked rollercoasters, everyone is ugly when exposed to the UV spectrum and faking one's death is rather hard to achieve in the Navy.Our guest speakers this month are Lizzie Murray, Steve Cockerell and Jon Mann!The track played on this episode was "Harkin On" by Squarehead from the album Live on Liz Berg's Show on WFMU 11/22/12 (Squarehead) / CC BY-NC-ND 3.0Click on the "Read More" tab below to access the podcast.---------------------------------------------------------------------Download PodcastNewsHorizons venture crumbling (since our report was recorded Hitachi are now intending to buy into the venture)Predicted electricity shortages by 2015Cancer Research UK launch the R UV Ugly? campaignAn American Nuclear Submarine Commander has reportedly faked his own death to fool his mistress

On this months show we discuss a little-known country called Iran and the nature of their nuclear programme. On our journey of whimsy we discover that mice may well communicate to humans through mobile phones, the Power Rangers may be called upon to face a new threat in Japan, there isn't a weapons-grade nuclear device on the Curiosity rover and the purpose of dodgeball is to avoid dislocating your thumb!Our guest speakers this month are Craig Morrison and Maureen Haverty!The track played on this episode was "Computer" by State Shirt from the album This is Old.Computer (State Shirt) / CC BY-NC-SA 3.0Click on the "Read More" tab below to access the podcast.---------------------------------------------------- Download PodcastIntroNewsMutated butterflies in JapanMobile phone radiation - Are there any health risks?How the Curiosity rover is powered by Plutonium-238Israel's ultimatum to IranDiscussion - IranThe "Tawkon" app - discussed on the show - can be found at the Google Play store.