In 1986, on the fateful day of April 26, the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant exploded, which is widely acknowledged as the worst nuclear disaster ever seen by humanity.
Unlike the 2011 Fukushima accident, the Chernobyl explosion was caused by human error.
Even after many years of research, there are still several unanswered questions about the nuclear disaster.
What caused the Chernobyl explosion?
According to the World Nuclear Association, the explosion was the result of:
• Inherently Flawed Reactor Design (RBMK-1000 nuclear reactors)
• Inadequately Trained Personnel
How did the accident occur?
According to UNSCEAR, the explosion occurred at 1.23 am during a maintenance check.
A pair of engineers at the nuclear site started running a torture test. However, the test went horribly wrong and as a result, an explosion released large quantities of radioactive particles into the atmosphere.
Aftermath:
• 31 people were killed, while millions more were affected.
• Approximately 8.4 million people in the former Soviet territories got the largest exposure to harmful radiation.
• The nearby area of around 60,000 square miles was contaminated.
• Over 400,000 people were displaced.
• According to sources, over 200 people suffered from ARS (Acute Radiation Sickness)
• Through potential contamination of the groundwater, it threatened millions of lives.
• The exact death toll is still subject to dispute.
Although shrouded in secrecy, the disaster was a watershed moment in nuclear history. In 2016, the UNGA (United Nations General Assembly) designated 26 April as International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day. The catastrophic Chernobyl accident marked its 34th anniversary in 2020.
