STUDENT 1: HEY, WHAT'S
GOING ON WITH THE POWER?
STUDENT 2: I DON'T KNOW.
JOAN, WHAT'S WITH THE POWER?
JOAN CARTAN-HANSEN, HOST: POWER?
WELL, WE IN THE UNITED STATES
GET ABOUT 20 PERCENT OF ITS
POWER FROM NUCLEAR ENERGY.
STUDENT 2: NO, I MEAN THE
LIGHTS.
CARTAN-HANSEN: WELL, ENERGY DOES
COME IN MANY FORMS INCLUDING
LIGHT.
BUT SINCE YOU ASKED ABOUT
NUCLEAR ENERGY, CAN I TELL YOU
MORE?
STUDENT 1: NO, WE MEANT
ABOUT...OH NEVER MIND.
STUDENT 2: NO, I'D REALLY LIKE
TO LEARN ABOUT NUCLEAR ENERGY.
CARTAN-HANSEN: WELL, IF YOU'RE
GOING TO LEARN ABOUT NUCLEAR
ENERGY, THE FIRST PLACE YOU HAVE
TO START IS WITH THE ATOM.
ATOMS ARE TINY PARTICLES THAT
MAKE UP ALL MATTER.
ATOMS EACH HAVE A NUCLEUS MADE
UP OF A PROTONS AND NEUTRONS AND
THEN ELECTRONS WHICH CIRCLE THE
NUCLEUS.
ATOMS DIFFER IN THE NUMBER OF
PROTONS, NEUTRONS AND ELECTRONS.
EACH INDIVIDUAL COMBINATION IS
KNOWN AS AN ELEMENT.
THERE ARE AT LEAST 92 DIFFERENT
KINDS ELEMENTS IN NATURE.
YOU CAN SEE THEM LISTED ON THE
PERIODIC TABLE OF ELEMENTS.
NOW, NUCLEAR ENERGY IS THAT
ENERGY IN THE CORE OF AN ATOM.
THAT ENERGY THAT HOLDS THE ATOM
TOGETHER IS THE STRONGEST FORCE
IN NATURE.
AND WHEN WE BREAK THAT BOND, THE
ENERGY THAT GETS RELEASED CAN BE
USED TO PRODUCE ELECTRICITY.
STUDENT 2: BUT HOW?
CARTAN-HANSEN: WELL, IT'S A
PROCESS CALLED NUCLEAR FISSION
AND IT STARTS WITH URANIUM.
URANIUM IS A METAL FOUND IN
ROCKS.
WE MINE IT AND THEN PROCESS IT.
URANIUM OCCURS IN SLIGHTLY
DIFFERENT FORMS KNOWN AS
ISOTOPES.
EACH ISOTOPE CONTAINS A SLIGHTLY
DIFFERENT NUMBER OF NEUTRONS IN
ITS NUCLEUS.
URANIUM'S ISOTOPES ARE
URANIUM-238 AND URANIUM-235.
MOST NUCLEAR PLANTS USE URANIUM
235 AS ITS FUEL BECAUSE, UNDER
THE RIGHT CONDITIONS, IT CAN BE
SPLIT.
AND WHEN AN ATOM IS SPLIT, IT
RELEASES ENERGY.
NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS USE THE
HEAT GENERATED FROM SPLITTING
ATOMS TO HEAT WATER, WHICH IS
THEN TURNED INTO STEAM.
THAT STEAM TURNS A TURBINE
CONNECTED TO A GENERATOR WHICH
PRODUCES ELECTRICITY.
A NUCLEAR POWER PLANT PRODUCES
ELECTRICITY IN PRETTY MUCH THE
SAME WAY AS A COAL PLANT
DOES...BUT INSTEAD BURNING A
FOSSIL FUEL, THE NUCLEAR POWER
PLANT GETS ITS HEAT FROM
SPLITTING ATOMS.
STUDENT 1: BUT HOW DOES THAT
WORK?
CARTAN-HANSEN: THE CORE OF A
NUCLEAR REACTOR HAS A NUMBER OF
RODS FILLED WITH URANIUM.
THEN OPERATORS SHOOT NEUTRONS
INTO THE URANIUM AND IT STARTS A
CHAIN REACTION.
STUDENT 2: WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY A
CHAIN REACTION?
CARTAN-HANSEN: WELL, KIND OF
LIKE THIS OVER HERE.
SO IMAGINE THAT THESE DOMINOS
ARE THE CORE OF A NUCLEAR
REACTOR.
SO YOU SEND IN A NEUTRON TO
SPLIT THE FIRST ATOM, IT THEN
SENDS OUT MORE NEUTRONS TO SPLIT
THE NEXT ATOMS AND THEN SENDS
OUT MORE NEUTRONS AND SPLITS
MORE ATOMS.
AND EACH TIME YOU SPLIT AN ATOM
IT RELEASES ENERGY IN THE FORM
OF HEAT.
STUDENT 1: YOU MEAN IT COULD
JUST KEEP GOING ON AND ON.
DOES IT EVER STOP?
CARTAN-HANSEN: WELL NUCLEAR
REACTORS HAVE THINGS CALLED
CONTROL RODS THAT HELP SLOW DOWN
OR STOP THE CHAIN REACTION.
HERE LET ME SHOW YOU.
YOU GUYS PUT IN THE RULERS AND
I'LL START THE DOMINOS.
WHAT HAPPENED?
STUDENT 2: IT STOPPED.
CARTAN-HANSEN: RIGHT, SO AN
OPERATOR CAN PUT IN CONTROL RODS
INTO THE REACTOR AND CONTROL THE
PROCESS OF NUCLEAR FISSION AND
IN THAT WAY IT CONTROLS HOW MUCH
HEAT THE REACTOR PUTS OUT.
BUT NUCLEAR POWER, LIKE ALL
SOURCES OF ENERGY WE PRODUCE,
HAS ITS PROS AND CONS.
NUCLEAR PLANTS ARE EXPENSIVE TO
BUILD BECAUSE THEY PUT IN SO
MANY SAFETY FEATURES, BUT THE
FUEL IS LESS EXPENSIVE.
NUCLEAR POWER IS LESS
DESTRUCTIVE TO THE ENVIRONMENT
BECAUSE YOU DON'T NEED A LOT OF
URANIUM TO GET ELECTRICITY.
FOR EXAMPLE, IT WOULD TAKE 2,000
POUNDS OF COAL, 149 GALLONS OF
OIL, 17,000 CUBIC FEET OF
NATURAL GAS, OR 5,000 POUNDS OF
WOOD TO PRODUCE THE SAME AMOUNT
OF ENERGY AS A ONE-INCH PELLET
OF URANIUM FUEL!
NUCLEAR POWER ALSO DOESN'T
RELEASE AS MUCH CARBON DIOXIDE
SO UNLIKE COAL OR GAS POWER
PLANTS, IT DOESN'T REALLY ADD TO
THE PROBLEM OF GLOBAL WARMING.
AND UNLIKE SOLAR OR WIND POWER,
NUCLEAR ENERGY CAN BE PRODUCED
ELECTRICITY ANYTIME, MAKING IT A
RELIABLE SOURCE OF ELECTRICITY.
BUT NUCLEAR POWER DOES HAVE SOME
SERIOUS DRAWBACKS.
LIKE ANY TECHNOLOGY, IT CAN BE
APPLIED FOR BENEFICIAL OR
DESTRUCTIVE PURPOSES.
FOR EXAMPLE, DURING WORLD WAR 2,
WE DEVELOPED BOMBS THAT USED
ATOMIC ENERGY.
COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD NOW
HAVE NUCLEAR BOMBS AND OFFICIALS
ARE WORKING TO PREVENT THEIR
USE.
ANOTHER PROBLEM: A FEW NUCLEAR
POWER PLANTS HAVE HAD ACCIDENTS
AND EXPOSED PEOPLE IN THE AREA
TO NUCLEAR RADIATION.
AND CREATING NUCLEAR POWER
LEAVES BEHIND HIGH AND LOW LEVEL
RADIOACTIVE WASTE.
EXPOSURE TO A HIGH ENOUGH LEVEL
OF NUCLEAR RADIATION OR
RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL CAN BE
DEADLY.
HIGH LEVEL NUCLEAR WASTE LIKE
THE FUEL INSIDE A NUCLEAR
REACTOR CAN REMAIN DANGEROUS FOR
THOUSANDS OF YEARS.
LOW LEVEL NUCLEAR WASTE IS LESS
DANGEROUS BUT STILL NEEDS TO BE
DISPOSED OF SAFELY.
AS A SOCIETY, WE ARE STILL
TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO
SOLVE THE PROBLEM OF THE PROPER
DISPOSAL OF NUCLEAR WASTE.
AND THERE IS ALSO THE RISK OF AN
ACCIDENT AT A NUCLEAR POWER
PLANT WHICH COULD CAUSE SERIOUS
PROBLEMS FOR A VERY LONG TIME.
WE HAVE TO CONSIDER A LOT OF
CHOICES WHEN WE MAKE ELECTRICITY
AND NUCLEAR ENERGY IS ONE
OPTION.
AND BY THE WAY, POWER PLANTS
AREN'T THE ONLY WAY WE USE
NUCLEAR ENERGY TO MAKE HEAT.
THE STARS LIKE OUR SUN USE A
FORM OF NUCLEAR ENERGY TO SHINE,
BUT THAT'S A DIFFERENT VIDEO.
STUDENT 1: CAN WE SET UP THAT
CHAIN REACTION AGAIN?
CARTAN-HANSE: SURE.
AND FOR THE REST OF YOU.
IF YOU WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT
NUCLEAR ENERGY, CHECK OUT THAT
AREA ON THE SCIENCE TREK
WEBSITE.
YOU'LL FIND IT AT
IDAHOPTV.ORG/SCIENCE TREK
(MUSIC)
NARRATOR: PRESENTATION
OF SCIENCE TREK ON IDAHO PUBLIC
TELEVISION IS MADE POSSIBLE
THROUGH THE GENEROUS SUPPORT OF
THE LAURA MOORE CUNNINGHAM
FOUNDATION, COMMITTED TO
FULFILLING THE MOORE AND BETTIS
FAMILY LEGACY OF BUILDING THE
GREAT STATE OF IDAHO; BY THE
IDAHO NATIONAL LABORATORY,
MENTORING TALENT AND FINDING
SOLUTIONS FOR ENERGY AND
SECURITY CHALLENGES; BY WALMART
AND THE WALMART FOUNDATION,
INCREASING ACCESS FOR IDAHO'S
CHILDREN TO EXPLORE THE
POSSIBILITIES OF SCIENCE AND
TECHNOLOGY AND SPARKING THEIR
INTEREST IN CAREERS THAT SHAPE
OUR WORLD; BY THE FRIENDS OF
IDAHO PUBLIC TELEVISION; BY THE
CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC
BROADCASTING AND BY VIEWERS LIKE
YOU, THANK YOU.