Latest news with #Radiation
Time of India
12-05-2025
- Science
- Time of India
A 1,000-X-ray blob: Why Chernobyl's Elephant's Foot still terrifies scientists
Nearly four decades after the Chernobyl disaster, the remnants of Reactor No. 4, especially the Elephant's Foot—a dense, highly radioactive mass formed from molten core materials—remain a powerful symbol of the nuclear accident's enduring danger. Rare footage from the 1980s and 1990s captured by radiation experts shows the extreme conditions inside the reactor's basement. Despite time and decay, the site continues to pose a threat, serving as a chilling reminder of the long-lasting impact of radiation exposure. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads A silent killer made of stone and fire Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads The brave who filmed the unfilmable Radiation on film and memory A disaster still unfolding Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads War reawakens the danger In 1986, a nuclear explosion rocked Reactor 4 of the Chernobyl power plant. In the immediate aftermath, radiation swept across what was then the Soviet Union. Among the remnants of the disaster was the formation of one of the deadliest objects on Earth—now known as the 'Elephant's Foot'. This mass of nuclear sludge, born from molten core material and reactor debris, still lies beneath the plant, a haunting symbol of the world's worst nuclear after the meltdown, strange molten structures began forming in the plant's lower levels. One such mass—shaped eerily like the foot of an elephant—solidified into what scientists later identified as corium. A searing combination of uranium, zirconium, graphite, steel, and sand, this highly radioactive sludge oozed its way through the reactor's pipes before cooling in the its peak, the Elephant's Foot emitted over 10,000 roentgens of radiation per hour—enough to kill a human in minutes. Experts likened the exposure to enduring 4.5 million chest X-rays in one sitting. Early symptoms of exposure included vomiting, diarrhoea, and fever. Scientists said being near it for five minutes could have resulted in death within two today, while the radiation has decayed, the site remains dangerous. The corium is now 'more or less has the consistency of sand,' said Maxim Saveliev from the Institute for Safety Problems of Nuclear Power despite its lethality, several individuals ventured close enough to photograph and study it—often at great personal of the most iconic recordings was made in 1996 by Artur Korneyev , a Kazakhstani radiation specialist. Donning a hazmat suit, he and his team descended into the flooded, rust-streaked depths beneath Reactor 4. The footage he captured is grainy, ghostly, and claustrophobic—filled with metallic remnants and spider webs. But at its centre sits the Elephant's Foot.'We had to use a Kalashnikov to chip pieces off,' said one scientist, referring to how dense the corium had later joked about his condition from radiation exposure : 'Soviet radiation is the best radiation in the world,' he told The New York Times. He is believed to have died in 2022 at age years after the disaster, physics technician Alexander Kupny volunteered to document Reactor 4's remains. In 1989, he ventured inside multiple times, managing to avoid acute radiation syndrome by limiting exposure. Kupny's footage, often taken from behind thick concrete or with remote cameras, has circulated online. Viewers noted how radiation warped the footage.'The white specks on screen is not the camera quality, but in fact the radiation messing with the film/camera itself,' commented one viewer on YouTube.'These folks sacrificed their own health and potentially their own life to record footage of this disaster. Mad respect,' said earlier, just days after the explosion, Soviet filmmaker Vladimir Shevchenko filmed the 30-kilometre Exclusion Zone from above. His 35mm footage carried ghostly static and distortion. It was only later that he understood: he had captured radiation itself on long-term impact of Chernobyl is grim. The United Nations reported that over 400,000 people were relocated from the surrounding areas. More than 500,000 firefighters and cleanup personnel were exposed to high radiation. While 31 died in the immediate aftermath, estimates of eventual deaths range between 4,000 and 60,000. Thousands of thyroid cancer cases have been traced back to contamination from the four other known corium formations have ever emerged during nuclear meltdowns in history. None have the notoriety or public recognition of the Elephant's the decades that have passed, Chernobyl remains a flashpoint. In 2022, during Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Russian troops took control of the plant—raising alarms worldwide. Ukrainian staff warned that if the generators failed, the consequences 'could have been catastrophic.' Reports emerged that Russian soldiers dug trenches in the Exclusion Zone and may have been exposed to 'significant doses' of again, the world was reminded: Chernobyl is not in the is still a wound, open and radioactive.
Saudi Gazette
28-04-2025
- Saudi Gazette
Suspect in killing of general claims he was paid by Ukraine
MOSCOW — A man arrested on suspiction of killing a Russian general with a car bomb has pleased guilty to terrorism charges and said he was paid by the Ukrainian Security Service, Russian authorities said on Sunday. Lt. Gen. Yaroslav Moskalik, deputy head of the main operational department in the General Staff of the Russian armed forces, was killed along with his assistant on Friday by a bomb in his car in Balashikha, outside the capital Moscow. Ukrainian authorities have not commented on the attack, which was the second in four months targetting high-ranked Russian military offices that was blamed on Ukraine amid the conflict between the two countries. Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov died on 17 December 2024 when a bomb hidden on an electric scooter outside his apartment building exploded as he walked past on the way to his office. Ukraine's security agency did acknowledge it was behind that attack. Kirillov was the head of Russia's Radiation, Biological and Chemical Protection Forces, a special group of soldiers responsible for protecting the military from enemy use of nuclear, chemical or biological weapons while ensuring operations in a contaminated environment. He was under sanction from a number of countries, including the UK and Canada, due to his actions in the war against Ukraine. — Euronews
Euronews
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
Suspect in killing of general claims he was paid by Ukraine, Russia says
ADVERTISEMENT A man arrested on suspiction of killing a Russian general with a car bomb has pleased guilty to terrorism charges and said he was paid by the Ukrainian Security Service, Russian authorities said on Sunday. Lt. Gen. Yaroslav Moskalik, deputy head of the main operational department in the General Staff of the Russian armed forces, was killed along with his asistant on Friday by a bomb in his car in Balashikha, outside the capital Moscow. Ukrainian authorities have not commented on the attack, which was the second in four months targetting high-ranked Russian military offices that was blamed on Ukraine amid the conflict between the two countries. Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov died on 17 December 2024 when a bomb hidden on an electric scooter outside his apartment building exploded as he walked past on the way to his office. Ukraine's security agency did acknowledge it was behind that attack. Kirillov was the head of Russia's Radiation, Biological and Chemical Protection Forces, a special group of soldiers responsible for protecting the military from enemy use of nuclear, chemical or biological weapons while ensuring operations in a contaminated environment. He was under sanction from a number of countries, including the UK and Canada, due to his actions in the war against Ukraine.
The Herald Scotland
27-04-2025
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
Suspect in killing of Russian general claims he was paid by Ukraine, Russia says
Lt Gen Moskalik was killed on Friday by a bomb in his car in Balashikha, just outside Moscow. Ukrainian authorities did not comment on the attack, the second in four months targeting a top Russian military officer that Moscow has blamed on Ukraine amid the conflict between the neighbouring countries. Lt Gen Igor Kirillov was killed on December 17 2024, when a bomb hidden on an electric scooter parked outside his apartment building exploded as he left for his office. Ukraine's security agency acknowledged it was behind the attack. Kirillov was the chief of Russia's Radiation, Biological and Chemical Protection Forces, the special troops tasked with protecting the military from the enemy's use of nuclear, chemical or biological weapons and ensuring operations in a contaminated environment. His assistant also died in the attack. Kirillov was under sanctions from several countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada, for his actions in the fighting in Ukraine.
NDTV
26-04-2025
- NDTV
Senior Russian General Killed In Car Explosion Near Moscow
Moscow: The Deputy Chief of the Main Operations Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, Yaroslav Moskalik, died in a car explosion in Balashikha near Moscow on Friday, TASS reported, citing Russian Investigative Committee Spokeswoman Svetlana Petrenko. An improvised explosive device caused the blast, and an investigation is being conducted. The explosion occurred near building number 2 at Nesterova Boulevard in Balashikha. Yaroslav Moskalik (59) represented the Russian Ministry of Defence in various negotiations. TASS reported that the Russian Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case into the explosion under Articles 105 and 222.1 of the Criminal Code (murder, illegal trafficking in explosives). Investigators, analysts, and emergency response units of other law enforcement agencies have arrived at the site of the incident. According to the Investigative Committee, the explosion was triggered by the detonation of an improvised explosive device filled with submunitions, TASS reported. The device had the explosive power of over 300 grams of TNT, according to emergency response officials and its fragments will be sent for examination. Earlier in December, Chief of Russia's Radiation, Chemical and Biological Protection Troops Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov and his aide were killed in a blast in southeastern Moscow on Tuesday morning, state media reported. The blast was caused by an explosive device that had been planted in an electric scooter, Spokeswoman for the Russian Investigative Committee Svetlana Petrenko said as per the TASS news agency. "On the morning of December 17, an explosive device planted in a scooter went off near a residential building entrance on Ryazansky Avenue in Moscow, the investigation showed. Chief of Russia's Radiation, Chemical and Biological Protection Troops Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov and his aide were killed in the explosion," the spokesperson said.
