nuclear

of nuclear veto to small renewable support reactors

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The blackout that affected Spain and Portugal on April 28 He has revived the debate of renewables and nuclear. An discussion that has overreach the borders of the Iberian Peninsula and the country’s reference country is discussing it: Denmark. Short. Lars Aagaard, Minister of Climate, Energy and Public Services of Denmark, has confirmed in the Politiken environment that the government is evaluating the possibility of raising the veto to nuclear energy. In addition, he has indicated that the evaluation process will take a year and focus on the pros and cons of reviving nuclear energy. The nuclear past. Denmark made the decision to close the door to the nuclear in 1985. That period was marked by the accidents of Three Mile Island and, a few years later, Chernobil, so he ended up sealing the Danish rejection of a technology seen as dangerous and unpredictable. And what do you want? The Danish minister has mentioned that the analysis will focus on small modular reactors (SMR), a technology that promises shorter construction times and lower financial risks than large traditional plants. However, many SMR are still in the design phase or waiting for regulatory approval, What a question raises about its short -term availability. A little note. SMRs are advanced nuclear reactors with a power capacity of up to 300 electric megawatts per unit, which represents about a third of the generation capacity of conventional nuclear reactors. These reactors can be assembled at the factory and transported to the installation site, which facilitates its deployment in areas with limited infrastructure or in combination with renewable sources to provide a generation of flexible electricity and low carbon emissions. The Danish energy matrix. More than 80% of electricity From the country comes from its wind farms on the high seas, consolidating as a totally renewable country. In addition, it is interconnected with its neighbors, Sweden and Norway, which supply hydroelectric and nuclear energy almost immediately. Voices found. The debate on nuclear energy has polarized the Danish Parliament. As has detailed The Financial Times, four right -wing games have requested to meet with the minister to support nuclear as reinforcement of the electrical system. While the most environmentalist sectors have warned about the risks inherent to nuclear energy and the possibility of diverting funds and care of renewable energy investments. On the border. Neighboring countries the discussion is lived differently. On the one hand, Sweden has Three reactors in operationbut the current government He is trying to reopen More nuclear plants. On the other hand, Finland Inaugurated a central which has evidenced budgetary problems around nuclear projects. For its part, Norway, although a little further from Denmark, has chosen to focus on hydroelectric energy, staying outside the nuclear debate. Forecasts Denmark is at an energy crossroads. With a matrix based on renewable energy, the country must decide whether to continue betting solely on them or consider nuclear energy as a strategic complement. The experience of its neighbors, advances in SMR technology and the global context of energy crisis will be determining factors in a debate that promises to be long and controversial. Image | Andy Dingley Xataka | China’s energy paradox: an ‘electrostate’ that continues to feed on coal

There is a non -proliferation pact of nuclear weapons. In 2025 what we need is one that avoids murderous robots

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In 1139 Pope Innocent II prohibited The use of the crossbow. He then described it as “a detestable weapon for God and unworthy for Christians,” although he considered it valid to fight the infidels. The measure was not taken into account, and the crossbow continued to be used in later centuries. The history of weapons has always been linked to these prohibitions, and now there is a especially delicate: the one that affects the so -called “murderous robots.” Prohibited weapons. That example of the crossbows ended up being just one of the many that have surrounded the evolution of the military weapons and its application to war conflicts. In 1970 the Nuclear Non -Proliferation Treaty To avoid the use of nuclear weapons, but international law also prohibits the use of chemical, biological or antipersonnel mines. These agreements are not usually ratified by all countries of the world, but by the vast majority. Beware of autonomous weapons. As indicated In ReutersThe United Nations Organization has called a meeting to regulate the segment of autonomous weapons controlled by artificial intelligence. This type of armament is increasingly used in modern war conflicts, and experts warn: it is time to put limits to the use of this lethal technology. The Ukraine War as an example. What is being lived in the Ukraine war is a sign of how this type of autonomous weapons are being used. The drones and robots They are being used Notable form against Russian troops, and there is already drones throwing drones to attack other drones. The relevance From this type of weapons it has been even affected by the commercial war between the US and China, which makes DANGER PRODUCTION AND EXPORT of these autonomous vehicles. In The New York Times They already warned of the rise of the fearsome “kamikaze drones” and their use in this conflict. Ten years talking about prohibiting murderous robots. In Xataka we have been talking about the danger of weapons with AI and drifting towards the famous “murderous robots”. He debate On the potential prohibition of murderous robots It comes from afarand organizations like Human Rights Watch has been trying to ban them since 2015 before it’s late. The researchers themselves already They warned of that danger In 2017 and Brad Smith, president of Microsoft, claimed that these murderous robots They are “unstoppable”. However, there are many countries that They have continued developing them, and there is no consensus when putting limits in this dangerous area. Deadline. The Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, has established that 2026 is the deadline for all countries to establish clear rules in the use of weapons with artificial intelligence. His words are clear: these autonomous armament systems are “politically unacceptable, morally disgusting” and should be prohibited. “ There is no consensus. What is missing is the aforementioned consensus: Alexander Kmentt, head of armament control in the Austrian Foreign Ministry, explained it: “Time is pressing to stop the nightmares that some of the most prestigious experts warn,” he said. Some great personalities of the technological world such as Elon Musk or Demis Hassabis They already warned of the problem in 2018 and asked the UN to ban autonomous weapons. The military resists. Diplomatic efforts face military controls, which according to Reuters resist regulation because that could blur the advantages posed by these technologies on the battlefield. This last meeting of the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCWfor its acronym in English) is the last edition of some meetings that have been held since 2014. Participants have been necessary “a legally binding treaty” for UN countries. But some countries prefer to go to their rhythm. Many countries support that general agreement, but USA, Russia, China and India prefer to have national regulations or that existing international laws are applied, according to Amnesty International. A US Pentagon spokesman said in Reuters that “we are not convinced that existing laws are insufficient” and stressed that autonomous weapons could raise a lower risk for civilians than conventional weapons. And since there is no regulation, there is proliferation. The lack of these limits is causing a clear development of this type of autonomous weapons. The experts of Future of Life Institute They have monitored the deployment of about 200 autonomous weapons systems in Ukraine, the Middle East and Africa. Russian forces have deployed some 3,000 kamikaze drones Veter in Ukraine, according to that data, and as we have indicated in several occasions In Xataka, that country has in these drones one of its Critical elements To attack Russian goals. Duality. As my partner Javier Jiménez said In a fantastic theme That he prepared in 2018, another of the problems with this debate is that “it is very difficult to determine what to prohibit and what not in a world as strongly computerized as the war.” The key is not so much in technological and ethical, and here we are facing a dual technology capable of being used for civil and military purposes. Here the reflection was clear: “No one is going to give a strategic military asset for an ethical issue,” he said. He added as a conclusion that “beyond alarmism, we need tools” to identify, monitor and control the development of these weapons because “neither good intentions nor self -control have worked well in the past.” A lot of money at stake. But as always, one of the factors of this industry is that there is a lot of money at stake, and more when there is a renewed fever for Increase defense budgets. Laura Nolan, of the Stop Killer Robots activist organization, made it clear that there is no guarantee that technology companies will be responsible when developing these systems: “In general, we do not trust that industries are self -regulated … there is no reason why defense or technology companies must be more worthy of trust.” In Xataka | Ukraine has found a solution to China’s veto in drones: it’s called Hell, it’s a “home” missile and … Read more

After the blackout, the government defended the nuclear closure because “in Spain there is no uranium.” Reality is more complicated

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The question of uranium has returned to the forefront after the president of the Government affirm that “in Spain there is no uranium and therefore we will have to import it.” Although Spain has large uranium deposits, reality is always more complicated than the usual black or white policy. The second European country with more uranium. Spain has between 25,000 and 30,000 tons of uranium, “the second most important reserves of the European Union,” According to the geologist Jesús Martínez Frías. Both the ‘Red Book’ of the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) as the National Geographic Institute (IGN) indicate the existence of resources with the possibility of exploitation in Spanish territory, mainly in the province of Salamanca. Why they stopped exploding. Spain had uranium mining, but The last mine closed in 2000 for the “exhaustion of economically exploitable mining resources”, according to the Ministry for Ecological Transition. The Spanish Nuclear Society (SNE) said that production costs had exceeded 30% market prices, which made its continuity unfeasible. Two decades later, the Law 7/2021 of climate change and energy transition Truncó any new attempt To exploit the deposits: “Due to their prejudices, their cost will not be granted new exploration, research or concessions of exploitation of radioactive minerals, nor will new authorization requests be admitted.” Environmental problems. The risk of radioactive water contamination is another elephant in the room. A study Posted by Environmental Pollution In 2018 he documented “much higher” uranium concentrations than background geochemical levels near old mines abandoned in Salamanca. The levels in the soil ranged between 207.2 and 542.4 mg kg⁻¹, when the natural background levels are 29.8 mg kg⁻¹ for granite and 71.2 mg kg⁻¹ for slate. The study proposed environmental restoration measures, such as reforestation, in areas close to old farms. They are not entirely unfeasible. The political landscape has changed with the European Union in search of energy sovereignty and resources. The economic landscape too. With The price of upward uraniumthe Berkeley Minera company has a revived interest in its Retortillo project. The request for exploitation of this deposit was delivered before Law 7/2021 applied, but the Nuclear Safety Council also issued An unfavorable environmental report for “the low reliability and the high uncertainties of security analysis in geotechnical and hydrogeological aspects.” Uranium you have to enrich it. Although there was a political change that leads to the reactivation of Retry, the uranium that is extracted from the earth (natural uranium) barely contains 0.7% of Uranium-235, the necessary physiognable isotope for most nuclear reactors. It would be necessary to enrich uranium, a process that consists in increasing the concentration of uranium-235 to 3-5% levels for light water reactors, which are the most common. Spain does not have its own high -scale enriched uranium, or facilities in which to enrich uranium at the industrial level for use as fuel in nuclear centrals. Can Spain enrich uranium? Spain had the capacity to produce uranium concentrates (in the form of yellow cakes or Yellowcakes), But obtaining enriched uranium is a subsequent, technologically more complex and expensive process, dominated by a few countries. Today, 60% He leaves Russia and China. ENUSA (the national uranium company) already had difficulty replacing Russian enriched uranium after Commercial vetoes for the Ukraine War. Enriching it would be a major challenge. A change of direction. In the new geopolitical context, the European Union is promoting the reactivation of mining to ensure a sovereign supply of key materials for energy transition and defense. Spain is rich in Uranium, but also in resources such as copper, which is the second EU producer. Besides, It has lithiumcobalt, Coltán and possible lower land deposits. Seven of the 47 new Strategic Mining Projects promoted by the EU They will be developed in Spainalthough most face the rejection of environmental organizations for its environmental impact, such as the lithium mine in Cáceres. The epicenter of the debate. Discussions on Spanish uranium are a broader reflex of tensions: the strategic autonomy of resources, the imperatives of the energy transition, environmental protection and social acceptance of mining activity. In the end, the epicenter of the debate is the high cost of building and maintaining traditional nuclear plants in the face of renewable energy sources, of which Spain is world power. Only last year, Spain produced 148,999 GWh of renewable energy, 56.8% of Mix. If the blackout was A notice that the electricity is not prepared To stabilize large renewable energy fluctuations, what touches is wondering what are the investments in storage, investors, interconnections and energy sources alternative to pollutants combined cycles of gas to avoid another blackout. Everything is said regarding the closure of nuclear plants or the extraction of uranium in Spain, but the solar industry will not go anywhere. Image | Tecnatom In Xataka | In Salamanca there is a high -tech nuclear fuel bars factory that exports to all of Europe: we have visited it

China is immersed in a nuclear revolution and needs industrial amounts of Uranium. His solution: “fish” in the sea

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China is one of the countries that is most promoting the adoption of renewable energy thanks to Great ‘farms’ and market saturation of solar panels. At the same time, they have approved the Construction of ten new nuclear reactors. It may seem a contradiction, but in the midst of a Strong commercial warit is another step in energy self -sufficiency, and to achieve it they will need tons of uranium. Your solution? Squeeze the uranium of the seas. Marine mine. The country account with 56 nuclear reactors and has between 25 and 29 under construction. This implies that they need a lot of Uranium and the problem is that they do not produce enough. HE esteem That, in 2023, China’s production was only 1,700 tons, 4% worldwide, and although they have strong reserves, they need more. In turn, China imported Some 22,000 tons in 2024 and have begun to put solutions. In 2024 began The construction of the National Project of Uranium Nº1 in Ordos. It will become the largest uranium mine in the country and a few months ago They announced that had discovered another important site, also in Ordos. However, it still is not enough, so they have seen the sea. Uranium fish. Because yes: there is uranium in the oceans. Its concentration is extremely low, about 3 micrograms per liter, but due to oceanic immensity, it is estimated that the total is 4.5 billion tons of uranium. There are a thousand times more uranium in the seas than in known land reserves. Extract Uranium from the sea is not something new and, during the 80s, Japan led the development of marine uranium extraction techniques. The problem is that it is a complex and, above all, inefficient process. That is why researchers focus on active uranium collection methods‘dapando’ different materials to be able to extract more material per liter. It is also a expensive method, about ten times more to extract it from terrestrial sources. Miraculous material. But this is where the Chinese team of the Frontiers Science Center For Rare isotopes of the University of Lanzhou enters. In a study published in NatureThey explain that the key to extracting more efficient marine uranium resides in the MOF, or metal-organic frameworks. It is a crystalline material composed of metal ions that are coordinated with organic elements to form structures of great porosity. It is like an extremely efficient fishing network to catch small particles that, in the case of uranium, allows you to better separate this element from others to which it can be attached. The Chinese team has dopa with Dipniletinelo molecules and claim that this new DAE-MOF material allows an uranium absorption capacity of 588 mg per gram, according to the tests. This involves an efficiency 40 times higher when separating uranium from metals and vanadium and has been tested both in simulated and real sea water. Aim. The idea is now to create test extraction plants this year, with pilot plants on the tons scale for 2035 and with a continuous production by 2050. wait That China’s demand for uranium is more than 40,000 tons in 2040, so land mines in conjunction with these marine alternative sources are essential to achieve the goal. Without a doubt, it is an advance in marine uranium extraction at a time when the rest of the players on this board are also found Looking for ways to get more out of the sea for energy independence at a time when buying to other countries He has put up legs. And the United States, of course, is also in that fight, with the US Department of Energy analyzing The technical, economic and environmental viability of large -scale uranium extraction in its waters. Images | Robordouderio, Robert Taylor from StirlingNature In Xataka | Spanish nuclear have been criticized for their role in the blackout. This was what they did before, during and after collapse

Spanish nuclear have been criticized for their role in the blackout. This was what they did before, during and after collapse

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On April 29, just a few hours after Total collapse of the electricity grid Spanish, Pedro Sánchez, the president of the Government of Spain, He made these statements: “Citizens should know that during this crisis nuclear power plants, far from being a solution, have been a problem Because they were turned off. And it has been necessary to divert large amounts of energy to maintain their stable nuclei. At this time there are two nuclear centrals activated, and they are not because they are needed, but because their activation was already planned. “ His words require several nuances if we want to know in some detail what was the role of Spanish nuclear facilities in this incident and what they did before, during and after the total blackout. The first thing is worth repairing is that only three of the seven nuclear reactors of the Spanish park were turned off: the Trillo because the technicians were recharging fuel barsand those of Almaraz I and chests due to the needs that the electric market had at that time. The other four nuclear reactors, those of Almaraz II, Ascó I and II and Vandellós II, were operating normally before the blackout occurred. If we have this present the statement of Pedro Sánchez in which he argues that “(…) nuclear power plants, far from being a solution, have been a problem because they were turned off (…)” is not right. As we have just seen, Four reactors were delivering electricity to the network with total normality. In any case, the most interesting is what happened just when the collapse occurred. Security systems went into action to guarantee a safe stop Nuclear reactors are prepared to stop fission reactions whenever. The procedure that is used, very broadly, consists of introducing the control bars in the active section of the vessel, which are made of metal alloys of boron, cadmium or hafnio because these chemical elements have the ability to absorb a large number of neutrons. Fission reactions stop very quickly thanks to the effect of control bars, but, and this is very important, nuclear reactors have a great thermal inertia. This simply means that once the flow of neutron has stopped completely the reactor continues to generate residual heat due to the disintegration of products derived from nuclear fission. The main consequence of this behavior is evident: It is essential to sustain core cooling of the reactor even although this machine has stopped by introducing the control bars and modifying the composition of the refrigerant By adding boric acid to the primary circuitwhich also has a very high index of neutron absorption. Active and liabilities refrigeration systems must ensure that residual heat does not compromise the integrity of the reactor Active and passive cooling systems have to ensure that residual heat does not compromise the integrity of the reactor, and, curiously, thermal inertia can last even for several days. When on April 28 there was the collapse of the Electric Red the four reactors that were in operation were automatically stopped and the security systems that have been designed to hold a safe stop were activated. The first thing that happened was that autonomous diesel generators started automatically and generated the electricity that was necessary at that time to keep the entire installation on a safe stop. Everything was executed as planned according to the Nuclear Safety Council. A few hours later, when the supply of electricity from abroad resumed, the autonomous diesel groups were disconnected and the emergency plan was deactivated. From that moment on, nuclear centrals have been resuming the production of electricity, although before doing so the technicians have carried out the security checks that are necessary. An important note once we have reached this point: the recovery of the activity of nuclear power plants and their synchronization with the electricity grid are carried out as the system operator, which is Red Eléctrica de España, and the electricity market requires it. A week after the total blackout we have no solid reason to conclude that Spanish nuclear power plants have put us in danger. Image | Nuclear forum More information | Nuclear forum In Xataka | China and Russia have an extremely ambitious plan: in 2028 they will build a nuclear power plant on the moon

Since the end of World War II there have only been two countries with nuclear weapons at war. They just restart it

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And suddenly, the Indian army has launched An aerial offensive as it is not remembered in a long time against several positions in Pakistan and in the Kashmir administered by Islamabad. As we will see below, the tense story between the two territories came long, but above any other interpretation at this time, there is something that completely changes the hostility between the two nations. He Theme “Nuclear”. Context of a history of distrust. The conflict between India and Pakistan for Cashmerea region of the Himalayas disputed from the partition of India in 1947, has been a Constant source of tensionswars and insurgency between two nations that today have nuclear weapons. Its origin dates back to the decision of Maharajá Hindu of join the territory to India After an incursion of Pakistani militias, which unleashed the first war between the two countries. Since then, military clashes have occurred (1947, 1965, 1971 and 1999), provisional agreements such as the high fire of 1949 and the creation of the “Control line” in 1972as well as repeated reconciliation attempts that have failed, as happened after The Peace Summit of 1999, which was followed months later by a new armed conflict. More deaths. The situation is worsened in 1987 With the emergence of a separatist insurgency in the Indian part of Kashmir, fueled by the political discomfort and support of Pakistan, which led to a decade of intense violence. To get an idea, throughout the years 2000 and 2010, Kashmir more militarized on the planetwith regular bursts of violence. In 2019, after an attack that He killed 40 Indian soldiersIndia responded with Air attacks In Pakistan and, subsequently, the Narendra Modi government suppressed autonomy Constitutional of Kashmira, imposed a communications blackout and arrested thousands of local leaders, causing international criticism, although with the argument of restoring order and reducing terrorism. In April 2025, a brutal attack in which 26 civilians diedmostly Hindu tourists, turned on the polvorín again. India accused terrorists based on Pakistan, although he denied all involvement. A symbolic retaliation. The attack of a few hours ago, An aerial offensive against nine goals in Pakistan And in the Pakistani part of Kashmira, it is a retaliation for the terrorist attack of April 22. The military operation, Baptized Sindor (In reference to the red dust that symbolizes marriage in the Hindu tradition), it was presented by New Delhi as “measure, responsible and non-escalative”, directed exclusively against terrorist groups camps linked to Lashkar-E-Taiba and Jaish-E-Mohammad, both based on Pakistan. However, the scope of the attacks (which for the first time have hit areas outside the disputed region, within the heart of the Punyab Pakistani) represents a dangerous climb that leaves us on a new stage. Pakistan denounced the action as a “flagrant war act” and promised to respond with a “measure but forceful” retaliation at the time and place of his choice. The immediate tension has been aggravated with reports of fallen aircraft (at least two in Indian territory) and civil victims by fire of Pakistani artillery On the border. Map of states with nuclear weapons in the world The nuclear threat. We already said it at the beginning. This last round of clashes between two nations is not “one more” for one reason: its Nuclear weapons They revive ancient fears. They both possess Developed nuclear arsenals After atomic essays in 1998 that formalized their status as states with this type of weapons. According to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute estimates (SIPRI), India has around 172 nuclear eyelaces, while Pakistan has approximately 170, which makes them two of the nine countries with a nuclear weapons in the world. Different doctrines. The difference is that both maintain different doctrines. India holds one policy of “not first use”although its doctrine allows massive reprisals to a nuclear attack, while Pakistan has not adopted A formal posture of not first use and maintains a “plausible” deterrence strategy, supported by tactical nuclear weapons to counteract Indian conventional superiority. Although neither nations has deployed missiles with eyelets Permanently, both have land, aerial and, in the case of India, maritime launching systems, which constitutes a capacity of second developing attack. Persistent rivalry, border scarves and the current risk of rapid climbing make the situation a new focus of concern on global nuclear safety. Unprecedented from 2gm. The truth is that, if we stick to the definition of war, from World War II There has been no such worrying confrontation Between two nations. The “nuclear” theme changes everything. The closest thing to the current dispute between India and Pakistan and that “as nuclear” was halfway, in the Korea Warwhen direct clashes occurred Between US and Soviet fightersalthough Moscow never officially recognized them at that time. These fights occurred mainly in the called “Callejón de los Mig”near the Yalu River, on the border between North Korea and China. So, Soviet pilots, with MIG-15 aircraft and using North Korean or Chinese badges, they met American fighters, especially F-86 Sabre. Although it remained a secret to avoid open confrontation between both superpowers, subsequent records confirmed that hundreds of Soviet pilots They participated directly In the Air War. That said, it was not technically a war between the two nations, at least not in the terms of the current conflict. A fragile balance. In short, events after The air attack of India mark a very serious intensification of the conflict, with unpredictable consequences If a rapid offalized is not achieved. The activation of air defenses in India, the closure of civil airports in sensitive areas and the reports of victims by cross -border fire indicate that the region is in A critical moment. While India affirms that her operation was precise and surgical, limited to terrorist camps, the fact of bombing areas outside of Kashmir has redraws the limits of the conflict. In the absence of a bilateral mechanism of effective containment and with the international community limited to rhetorical exhortations, the risk of an uncontrolled escalation between two nuclear powers remains very present. Cashmere, … Read more

activates 10 new reactors and reinforces its nuclear domain

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The tariff war between the United States and China has not caused the Asian giant to make hasty decisions. On the contrary, the Nation of Xi Jinping continues to work on plans in the very long term, as is the case of the silent boom of oil. In this race towards energy self -sufficiency, the nuclear sector is another of the points where the Asian country is advancing leaps. Short. China has approved the construction of 10 new nuclear reactors, in an investment that exceeds 200 billion yuan (about 26 billion euros), According to The Paper. In this way, China celebrates its fourth consecutive year giving green light to large -scale nuclear initiatives. Renewed impulse. This ambition by the Asian giant in the nuclear ecosystem will be in charge of three state companies: China General Nuclear Power Corp. (CGN), China National Nuclear Corp. (CNNC) and State Power Investment Corp. According to China Dailythe authorities have hardened the control measures to ensure that each new reactor complies with the security standards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (OIEA). State investment. The Chinese strategy is deeply linked to the optimization of construction and operation costs, thanks to the intervention of a state apparatus that facilitates loans with low interest rates, which has proven to be key to the viability of nuclear projects, such as has pointed out The Paper. Face to the future. The forecasts collected by Bloomberg They point out that China’s operational nuclear capacity will reach 110 million kilowatts by 2030, surpassing any other country. If you maintain this rhythm, by 2040 its nuclear park could touch the 200 gigawatts, which would be equivalent to about 10 % of all national energy production. The expansion. The nuclear advance of the Asian country is a strategic play, since in a global context towards cleaner sources, China seeks to position itself as an exporter of nuclear technology, including the own design reactor Hualong One. If this trend was consolidated, the country would be outlined as a geopolitical reference in the new energy order, combining industrial capacity, state financing and energy diplomacy to challenge Western hegemony. Image | Shubert Science and Pexels Xataka | China had never been an important actor in global oil production. That is starting to change

Two workers from Elon Musk in Doge agreed to a private network. The US keeps the secrets of your nuclear arsenal there

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In February, one of the most rocambolesque stories was known around Doge, the Government Efficiency Department led by Elon Musk to essence, cut where he can in the administration of the United States Government. Apparently, they fired 350 officials who had to Readmit rapidly. The reason: they were the specialists in the assembly of nuclear eyelets. The story has now taken a more dangerous turn. The access they should never have. I told it a few hours ago exclusively NPR through confidential information access. Apparently, it was revealed that two young employees of that government efficiency department (Doge) created under the orders of Elon Musk, obtained accounts in classified networks With nuclear information highly sensitive. What’s doubt, the news has unleashed a political storm and national security in the United States. Luke Farritor, a former 23 -year -old Spacex fellow, and Adam Ramada, a Angel Investor Without previous experience in armament or intelligence, they appeared for at least two weeks in the directories of the reserved systems of the National Nuclear Safety Administration (NNSA) and the Department of Defense, according to sources with direct access to the networks. From denial to confirmation. The media counted that, although the energy department first denied any link, later admitted that the accounts Yes they were createdalthough they insisted that never They were activated nor used. So, the medium NPR remembers that the mere existence of these accounts, in maximum security environments that normally require a “Q” accreditation (The highest level of authorization of the DOE), has aroused alarm among experts, who interpret it as a sign of the growing and worrying doge penetration in critical areas of the state apparatus. All nuclear information. To understand the importance of the network to which they have had access, let’s think that the systems accessed by these employees are not mere confidential data repositories: these are networks that store and transmit plans for nuclear weapons design, special materials for their manufacture and strategic communications between laboratories, production centers and the pentagon. The first one, the NNSA Enterprise Secure Networkserves to share Restricted data between key actors of nuclear arsenal. The second, Siprnetallows the flow of information classified between the Department of Energy and Defense, including operations that could compromise national security if they were disclosed. Although it appears in the access directories does not equals to directly see classified documents (by the policy of “Need To Know”), experts Consulted by NPR They emphasize that it is the technical “head” that could provide future applications or expand the scope of influence within those platforms. Shadows on transparency. Plus: the incident adds to a series of controversial episodes starred By Doge In other federal agencies. As we count in February, a purge in the NSA directed by Doge (reviring only partially after public pressure) caused the dismissal of dozens of nuclear area employees. Shortly after, an informant denounced that Doge members had accessed internal systems of the National Board of Labor Relations (NLRB), requesting that They will not register their activities and deactivating monitoring tools, in addition to delete access traces. Not just that. One of the income attempts was made from an IP address located in Russia Using credentials created by Doge, which unleashed new suspicions and ignited cybersecurity alerts in several sectors of the government. These movements, added to the recent scandal by the use of signal application On the part of the Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to discuss sensitive military operations, they delineate a dangerous informality pattern and reckless management of critical information of the nation. The Doge experiment. Thus, the very existence of Doge, an entity born to “modernize the State” under the tutelage of Musk, begins to be questioned even between related sectorsgiven its opaque growth and the lack of accountability. His model (which combines entrepreneurs, technologists and actors outside the public administration) was sold as a response to the traditional bureaucracy, but it is generating fissures in institutional security and control systems. The case of Farritor and Ramadapeople without experience in intelligence or defense, shows the risks of introducing private operators in the ultrasecreta spheres of the State without proper safeguards. While the Department of Energy avoids giving explanations about why these accounts were created, analysts such as Hans Kristensen, of the Nuclear Information Projectthey warn that even unlacified budgets require delicate technical referencesand that any “ajar door” can have unpredictable consequences. A parallel state. The truth is that, far from being an isolated incident, Doge insertion into nuclear networks reveals a broader and more dangerous trend: the emergence of a administrative power not electedwith access to privileged information, but without clear legal mandate or sufficient democratic supervision. If you want also, it implies that the logic of “technocratic” access overlaps institutional logic, and in that scenario the state becomes a testing ground for Operators with own agendas. The consequences of this reconfiguration are still in development (even overlaps Musk’s output), but the scandal leaves a warning meridianly clear: when the obsession with efficiency eliminates controls, which is gained at speed can cost very expensive, at least, In security. Image | Gage Skidmore In Xataka | Elon Musk fired hundreds of employees and now he has to hire them again: they were experts in nuclear weapons In Xataka | Elon Musk fired 6,000 employees two weeks ago. Now the US faces the massive entry of invasive species

Nuclear power plants have a very valuable resource so as not to collapse if electricity fails: the “flex” strategy

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The refrigeration system of The reactors of nuclear centrals It has a fundamental purpose: to guarantee that Fuel bars will remain at all times within Its operating temperatures range. If this parameter increases excessively they could melt and trigger a serious accident. To avoid it Conventional nuclear reactorslike those we have in Spanish nuclear plants, have a triple cooling circuit. The primary circuit consists of the vessel that contains the fuel bars and a deposit known as heat exchanger. The hot water from the vessel circulates between both deposits thanks to the action of a pump, so that it cools in the exchanger before returning to the vessel. This circuit is closed. In addition, the heat exchanger acts as a steam generator, so a second circuit is responsible for introducing the cold water inside that, when coming into contact with the hot water of the primary circuit enters boiling. From there the necessary steam proceeds to transfer to the turbine the kinetic energy that will make it possible to obtain electricity thanks to the action of the alternator. Once the fluid crosses the turbine the water steam is cooled and condenses inside an additional tank to promote the appearance of water in the liquid state that will be introduced again in the heat exchangerthus giving rise to a second closed circuit known as secondary circuit. Again a pump is responsible for the water to circulate between the condensation tank and the heat exchanger. So far we have described two different closed circuits, the primary and the secondary, but we have left a loose end. In order for the water vapor of the secondary circuit to be condensed inside the condensation tank it is necessary to introduce in the latter cold water. And to do so it is necessary to resort to a third circuit known as external cooling circuit. The water of this last installation comes from the sea or from a river near the nuclear power plant, hence it is necessary to accommodate this type of centrals near one of these two natural resources. In modern nuclear centrals flexibility and redundancy are everything As we have just verified, so that the water that acts as a refrigerant element circulates correctly inside the primary and secondary circuits the action of at least two pumps is necessary, one for each circuit. And, of course, the pumps need electricity to function, like many other elements of the nuclear reactor, such as the pressor, the external cooling circuit pumps or the safety injection pumps. We explain everything in more detail in the article that we dedicate to The control rooms of nuclear centrals. Portable equipment allows all these functions to be performed without having to depend on exterior power supply After Fukushima The safety of all the world’s nuclear power plants was reinforced. They underwent very important stress tests during which all the central parameters were reviewed, especially those that were related to what had happened in Fukushim Baskets on the electricity grid. And once everything was reviewed, the incorporation of a series of measures to mitigate and prevent such accidents was standardized worldwide. This strategy is known as “flex”, which is the flexibility apocope. Nuclear centrals have been designed to Prevent Design Base accidents. This philosophy consists in thinking about what can happen with the purpose of implementing security measures to mitigate them in case they occur. What happens is that in practice, of course, there are accidents that you can not have planned, so in addition to the security systems prior to Fukushima, a series of portable equipment that allow all those functions from outside without having to depend on exterior power supply have been incorporated. They are totally portable and autonomous equipment that are already incorporated into all nuclear plants, and that can also be transported from one central to another in case of need via helicopter or through the military emergency unit (UME). In addition, there are also A central warehouse in Technatom Madrid where there are portable equipment that could be transferred in two or three hours to any Spanish nuclear power plant. As we have just seen, the redundancy of the equipment is also a crucial strategy in nuclear facilities. However, there is another resource that is even more important: The security culture. The training of all people who work in a nuclear power plant is individualized and permanent throughout their professional career. In Xataka | China and Russia have an extremely ambitious plan: in 2028 they will build a nuclear power plant on the moon In Xataka | This nuclear reactor is different from everyone else. It has been expressly designed for data centers

In 2028 they will build a nuclear power plant on the moon

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Yuri Ivanovich Borísov, former Vice Minister of Defense of Russia and currently at the head of Roscosmos, the Russian Space Agency, confirmed in March 2024 that China and the country led by Vladimir Putin planned to install a nuclear reactor on the surface of the moon. Russia’s long experience in the development of nuclear infrastructure is beyond doubt. And China, although it has later reached this industry, has scientific capacity and resources necessary to get airy. Its plan is to have the International Lunar Research Station (known as Ilrs for its acronym in English). Russia and China will operate it jointly, but for this installation to come to fruition it is essential to develop an energy source that guarantees a stable and sustained supply over time. This is the need that precisely aims to solve these two nations building A small nuclear power plant On the lunar surface. The starting gun will arrive in 2028 Pei Zhaoyu, the chief engineer of the Chang’e-8 mission, has confirmed This week how relevant Russia’s participation is in this project: “An important issue for the Ilrs is the energy supply. In this field Russia has a natural advantage because in regard to nuclear facilities, and especially sending them to space, leads the world even ahead of the US.” The Chang’e-8 mission will give the authentic departure gun to this very ambitious program. The International Lunar Research Station will be permanently inhabited from 2030 And it is that China plans to launch it in 2028 with a double purpose: initiate the preparation of the lunar base that will be permanently inhabited from 2030 and explore the construction of the nuclear reactor that will be responsible for the main delivery of energy to the station. As we have seen some lines up, both facilities They should be finished in 2035. Interestingly, the Chinese government has not yet officialized its approval of this plan, but the statements of Pei Zhaoyu corroborate that The collaboration of Russia and China is already underway. In any case, the country’s nuclear scientists led by Xi Jinping already have a preliminary design of their nuclear reactor ready. And it has some novel features. To elaborate it have been inspired by both NASA’s design and the old Soviet nuclear reactor Topaz-II. Your proposal will use Fuel bars Ring -shaped uranium dioxide; A double cooling system that will use liquid metal (NAK-78), and that, on paper, will be able to maintain the reactor core below 600 ºC; And finally, a moderator of Ititrio hydride neutrons that according to Chinese technicians is more efficient than conventional zirconium hydride moderators. Meanwhile the US is preparing His return to the moon through the NASA Artemis program. Its purpose is to place two astronauts on the lunar surface in 2027 and start from this milestone the construction of a sustainable lunar base. This installation will have large solar panels, but photovoltaic energy It is not enough to ensure supply Because on the moon the night endures for between fourteen and fifteen terrestrial days. For this reason The US is also developing a nuclear reactor known as FISION SURFACE POWER (FSP) that will be able to deliver 40 kW of power. Image | China National Space Administration More information | Interesting Engineering In Xataka | We are building nuclear spacecraft again. NASA believes we will need them

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