Did Jimmy Carter Stop a Nuclear Reactor from Destroying Ottawa?

newsweek.com

11 points·vinnyglennon··5 comments

Politics aside, Jimmy Carter is a saint, and a heck of a nuclear engineer. Aside from, arguably, Lincoln, Carter is the only US President that could (or should) some day be considered for beatification and canonization. This story reminds me of a brilliant piece of harmless satire. If you are unfamiliar of The Pepsi Syndrome [1], you're in for a treat.

[1] https://m.facebook.com/tapewrecks/videos/the-pepsi-syndrome/...

That was awesome, all the 70s SNL players at work, plus Rodney Dangerfield. :D

How do you lower yourself down into a reactor that has melted down at thousands of degrees and come out alive or not suffer radiation poisoning? The story seems embellished.

I think it depends on what you call the reactor. I think of a reactor as the vessel that holds the fuel, moderator, controls, etc. From the NRX diagram, the reactor includes everything within the concrete "biological shield". Here's a link to the NRX reactor description:

https://inis.iaea.org/collection/NCLCollectionStore/_Public/...

The NRX was disassembled and rebuilt within a year. My guess is that Carter and others were lowered from the "revolving door" above the reactor in order to remove bolts as part of the disassembly process. The clothing worn was needed to protect the personnel from being contaminated.

The story confuses the difference between radiation and contamination.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com