Question

The first reactor mishap occurred in
(a)Windscale
(b)Church Rock
(c)Three-Mile Island
(d)Kyshtym

Answer 1

Hint: Reactor mishaps occur when there is some malfunction in the operation of nuclear power plants and result in a lot of radioactive pollution. The worst nuclear mishap in the world is the Chernobyl disaster which occurred on 26th April 1986.

Complete answer:
The first reactor mishap occurred in Windscale. The disaster is also known as the Windscale fire that occurred on 10th October 1957. It is considered the worst nuclear accident to happen in Great Britain. The cause of this accident was graphite control rods weren’t working which led to uncontrolled radioactive reactions of Uranium. This led to a fire that kept burning for 16 hours.
Additional information: Now, let us study the other nuclear mishaps mentioned in the options.
Church Rock: Also known as Church Rock Uranium Mill Spill. This happened due to an accidental spill of the radioactive material. It occurred on 16th July 1979
Three Mile Island: The Three Mile Island disaster that occurred on 28th March 1979 is considered the worst nuclear mishap to have occurred in the United States. It happened because of nuclear coolant escaping which led to excessive heat being released. So much heat that the reactor itself melted down.
Kyshtym: The Kyshtym disaster occurred on 29th September 1957. This happened due to the failure of the cooling system which caused the contained material to overheat and eventually explode.
So, the correct answer is ‘Windscale.’

Note: -Nuclear energy is a great way to produce large amounts of energy without causing any pollution. But if not properly managed and disposed of can cause pollution to a very large extent.
-If not taken properly, the radiation from nuclear waste can cause mutations in living organisms at a very high rate. This will eventually lead to disorders like cancer.
-It is recommended to bury nuclear waste 500m below the Earth’s surface.