nuclear

France promised them happy with the Grand Nuclear Power Plant. Until the jellyfish swarms arrived

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In France, jellyfish have knocked out one of the country’s largest nuclear centrals. Yes, the same jellyfish you are on the beach. Although it sounds delusional, the company Électricité e France (EDF) has acknowledged that an incident with these jelly and transparent celentéreos has forced to pause four of the production units of The Gravian Plantlocated north of the country. The most surprising thing is that it is not something exceptional. What happened? The news has been given by EDF itself, which in A statement Posted yesterday explains that the Gravelines Nuclear Power He has seen how four of his six production units went out for a peculiar motive: jellyfish. The first three units (2, 3 and 4) were automatically disconnected on Sunday night following security protocols to protect the reactor. The fourth (unit 6) also automatically went out on Monday. What happened exactly? EDF is quite clear In this regard. The stops are explained by “the massive and unpredictable presence” of jellyfish in the drums of the pumping stations, located in the non -nuclear part of the plant. What happened is best understood by remembering that gravoras, a of the largest centrals From France, it is refrigerated with the help of a channel connected to the North Sea. The plant has water pumping stations that allow it to refrigerate the reactors. The jellyfish were located precisely in filters that are responsible for aspiring sea water to control its temperature. The four units that went out automatically (2, 3, 4 and 6) are also added to production units 1 and 5, which already They were disabled For maintenance work. Was there any danger? EDF too It is clear At that point. He assures that at no time there was danger and that what happened did not affect the safety of the facilities or meant any risk for the template or the environment. “The plant equipment has mobilized and perform the necessary diagnoses and interventions to restart the production units safely,” guarantees. At first He pointed out that the affected units could be operational again on Thursday, but Reuters slides That the schedule may not be fulfilled: the idea was to restart the four units today, but in principle it will only one. The rest will resume the activity little by little, progressively, until Friday. What jellyfish were they? The operator has not clarified it, but the Reuters agency holds that is about Pulmo rhizostomaalso known as Aguamala. Its presence in Gravelines could be explained by two factors: first the temperature of the sea, higher this summer, which favors jellyfish flowers and that these remain longer in the North Sea; Second, the force of the currents, which would have pushed the banks towards the channel and the central. Is it the first time that happens? No. It is not usual, but neither was it out of the ordinary. Gravelines already lived something similar In the early 90s and there are other plants distributed throughout the world that have encountered similar problems. Swiss Info appointment Specifically, US facilities, Scotland, Sweden and Japan, which would also have suffered them last decade. Its proliferation is explained by water warming and The overfishingwhich has punished tuna banks. In this case, jellyfish have affected a relevant plant for France, equipped with six units that produce 900 megawatts of energy each, near 5.4 Gigawatts in total. The idea is that from 2040 shelter two EPR2 reactors. Images | Joel Filipe (UNSPLASH), EDF and Wikipedia In Xataka | SMR reactors were supposed to save nuclear energy. The first of the West for now is far from it

install a nuclear reactor on the moon before China and Russia create its exclusion zone

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The Space race has warm upthis time in the heat of a nuclear reactor on the surface of the moon. And as already happened in the 60s, the urgency is not scientific, but fundamentally geopolitical. The Duffy directive. The break between Elon Musk and Donald Trump trunciated Jared Isaacman’s career as future NASA administrator. The current acting administrator of the Space Agency, Sean Duffy, is in turn Trump’s Secretary of Transportation, faithful to the priorities of the White House. In a movement that will mark the priorities of the agency, Duffy has launched an accelerated plan to build a small nuclear power plant on the moon. The directive urges NASA to have a satellite functional reactor by 2030. Why 2030. The main motivation is get ahead of the Chinese and Russia Alliance to build your own lunar reactor. “We are in a race towards the moon, a race with China. And to have a base on the moon, we need energy,” Duffy explained In a later press conference. The fear of Washington is explicit in the directive itself: “The first country to do so could declare an exclusion zone, which would significantly limit the United States for establishing the Presence of Artemis If I will not arrive first. “ A new plan. NASA was already working on a project called Fission Surface Power (FSP) with the intention of installing a 40 kW reactor on the surface of the moon at the beginning of the next decade. The new directive, published entirely By NASA Watch, raise the bet to a more efficient Bryton cycle turns and a minimum power of 100 kW. The dates are also more ambitious. The United States government requires NASA to be installed for the first 2030 quarter using a launch system of at least 15 tons of capacity. The reactor and all transportation logistics and installation will be open to the American private industry through a future public tender. More astronauts, less science. Nuclear energy will be crucial for any manned lunar base. The moon has a day and night cycle of approximately 29.5 terrestrial days, which means that any type of lunar colony faces two weeks of icy darkness. Solar energy is unfeasible to feed the life support equipment and heating that will keep astronauts alive. A fission reactor, on the other hand, would provide a constant and reliable source of energy. This Directive is the first important movement of Sean Duffy as an acting administrator, and reflects the change of course that began the 2026 Budgets of the White House: an increase in the funds for human exploration of deep space, especially if they can prevent China from getting to Marsand cuts of up to 50% in purely scientific areasincluding many of the probes that study the solar system. In Xataka | The United States was going to send the first woman to the moon. China is getting it more and more difficult

New generation nuclear energy is still extremely expensive

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The future of fission energy is unquestionably linked to Modular and compact nuclear reactorsknown as SMR for its English denomination (Small Modular Reactor). They carry out more than two decades, and some of them are being designed according to The principles and requirements established for equipment Fourth Generation Nuclear Fission. In fact, they are being devised for the purpose of not being weighed down by the deficiencies introduced in the previous generations. One of the characteristics that, in theory, allows them to outdo conventional nuclear reactors is that their commissioning and maintenance costs have to be comparable to the expenses required by other energy sources. However, for the moment they are not. Csiro, the National Scientific Agency of Australia, has prepared a report in which it analyzes the cost of the energy sources currently used, and the renewables are the cheapest. This conclusion was predictable, but the surprising thing is that next -generation nuclear reactors are the most expensive energy generation technology. To reach this conclusion CSIRO has analyzed the costs of the Darlington (Canada) SMR Nuclear Nuclear Plan SMR plan, which in principle will ascend to 23.200 million dollars. China and Russia already have SMR reactors In operation, but Darlington’s will be the first built in a western country. The shocking thing is that, According to Csirothis project will be much more expensive than any other option, including a conventional nuclear power plant. Cheaper energy generation technologies are photovoltaic and wind solar. Secondly, the gas resides, and then the nuclear on a large scale, the coal, and, finally, the SMR reactors. Despite all SMR reactors are the future of nuclear energy Before moving forward it is important that we keep in mind that the costs derived from the Darlington nuclear project will probably be reduced in other posterior SMR reactor facilities. This plan is a pioneer in the West, and, therefore, everything is new and presumably expensive. Even so, for the moment it is not clear if this technology will really equate its costs with those of other generation sources. It is currently difficult to anticipate that in the future an SMR reactor plant will have costs similar to those of a photovoltaic or wind solar installation. 4th generation designs can be very different from those of previous generations In any case, the SMR reactors that respect the established principles for fourth -generation nuclear fission equipment have other advantages that are worth not overlooked. On the one hand they have to reach the maximum possible sustainabilityso that the fuel is maximized to produce energy, the amount of radioactive waste resulting from the process is minimized and its management is as efficient as possible. In addition, modular and compact reactors can be installed in locations where it would be unfeasible to build a conventional nuclear power plant, such as, for example, On a floating platform. And finally, something also very important: their safety and reliability must be high enough to minimize the probability that the reactor core suffers damage. In addition, if an accident occurs, it should not be necessary to take emergency measures beyond the facilities of the nuclear power plant. Image | Nuclear forum More information | Indaily In Xataka | European historical milestone in nuclear fusion: the JET reactor has broken a crucial record on the road to commercial fusion energy

Ukraine has stolen the confidential information of the last nuclear submarine of Russia. And then he has published all his failures

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Two news in just a few days offered a summary of the importance of Nuclear deterrence of Russia and its need to update it. On the one hand, Moscow advertisement which will cease to respect the limitations of the treaty of nuclear forces of intermediate scope. On the other, The New York Times confirmed through satellite images that its nuclear submarine base had is damaged After an earthquake. Now Ukraine has just added another asterisk. The end to the treaty. The first news occurred two days ago. Moscow advertisement which will set aside the limitations of the treaty of nuclear forces of intermediate scope (Inf), signed in 1987 to eliminate land missiles with ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers and considered a milestone of the cold war. Although the pact was already broken after the United States withdrawal In 2019, Moscow maintained a unilateral moratorium that is now terminated, claiming that Washington plans to display missiles of this type in Europe and Asia. The decision also coincides with the entry into service of the Missile Orshnikcapable of carrying nuclear eyes and unfold in Belaruswhich increases fear in the West to a new arms race in which European capitals would be minutes from a Russian attack. While Medvedev launches direct warningsKremlin seeks to clarify the tone, although the definitive breakdown of the INF confirms the setback of nuclear control mechanisms and raises strategic tensions in Europe and Asia. The “touched” nuclear base. We count the fear And finally it has been confirmed. The earthquake that made the Russian nation tremble caused damage to the strategic base of Nuclear Submarines of Rybachiy, in the Kamchatka Peninsula, according to planet labs satellite images cited By The New York Times. The photos show that a section of a floating dock He got rid of of its anchor, although there are no major damage to the facilities. The Rybachiy base, vital for the Russian nuclear fleet in the Pacific, thus maintains its operation despite the damage located in its infrastructure. Before and after earthquakes in nuclear infrastructure Filtration. A few hours ago, Ukrainian military intelligence (Hur) has announced obtaining internal documents classified from the K-55 Knyaz Pozharskythe most more modern Russian nuclear nuclear submarine in the Borei-A classessential piece of the Kremlin nuclear triad. This ship, officially incorporated to the northern fleet On July 24, 2025 at a ceremony chaired by Putin, he is armed with 16 intercontinental missiles R-30 Bulava-30each capable of carrying up to ten nuclear eyelets. According to kyivthe material obtained includes complete lists of the crew with details of functions, physical preparation and qualifications, combat manuals, schemes of survival systems, organizational structure, internal regulations for life on board, protocols for evacuation and transfer of injuries, as well as Technical documents on failed communication equipment and engineering records. It would even have secured an excerpt from the daily service book, which regulates routine tasks and submarine combat operations. Part of the classified documents filtered The failures. The most surprising thing about the case is that Filtration now published represents a significant coup for the operational security Russian, as it offers Ukraine and its allies critical information on technical vulnerabilities not only of Knyaz Pozharskybut of the entire series of borei-a submarines, considered the more modern nucleus of Moscow nuclear deterrence. These data, according to The intelligence of Ukrainethey will allow identify From design limitations to safety protocols and resistance capabilities, eroding, in addition, the perception of invulnerability that Russia tries to project with its strategic fleet. Hur itself He stressed That this intelligence dismantles the “imperial myth” on the strength of the Russian nuclear arsenal, by exposing the fragilities of systems that Kremlin presents as unwavering. Part of the classified documents filtered The naval context in the war. Plus: the revelation arrives at a time when the Russian navy has suffered a palpable deterioration of its prestige and effectiveness, especially In the Black Seawhere the fleet has lost several key ships at the hands of Ukrainian naval drones and Western missiles. He sinking of the landing ship Caesar Kunikov, of the Patrol Sergei Kotov and of the Ivanovets Corvetteamong others, has weakened an instrument that until 2022 was perceived as dominant in the region. The NATO careMeanwhile, it moves towards the Arctic and North Atlanticwhere Russian underwater activities are closely monitored and have motivated the display of new forces Maritime Allied. In this context, know the specifications and vulnerabilities of the Borei-A class, which constitutes the strategic arm of the northern fleet in Gadzhievo, results from An incalculable value to calibrate nuclear balance and reinforce allied deterrence. The information in the modern war. If you want also, the Hur operation It is more than a espionage success: it symbolizes how, in the war of the 21st century, information can have both power as a precision missile. Ukraine, confronted with an adversary with palpable material, converts intelligence into An asymmetric weapon able to undress the vulnerability of the jewel of the Russian strategic fleet. On the other sidewalk, the lesson for Moscow seems clear: not even its nuclear submarines, designed to guarantee the survival of the State in case of total war, are immune, not only Natural disastersbut to Information War. Image | Ukrainian intelligencePlanet Labs In Xataka | It is not that Russia does not find the F-16 of Ukraine, is that kyiv has discovered the perfect hiding place for the future of wars In Xataka | A new challenge has arrived to Ukraine: it measures 4 meters, it has 75 kilos of explosives and uses AI to hit Russia

When the US began to investigate a nuclear waste tank he found an even worse nightmare: radioactive wasps

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If you are even the noses of the velutinasthe Backpacks and the Tigres mosquitoes and Japanesethink about this: there are people in South Carolina (USA) that what fears right now is the stalking of radioactive wasps. It sounds crazy, but it makes all the meaning of the world if one takes into account that there, near a plant in which in its day pieces for nuclear bombs were manufactured, They just found A loop with a radiation level ten times above what is allowed. The big question is … how is it possible? What happened? That a few days ago the US Department of Energy published A report which has generated Polvareda in the country’s media. And rightly. The document does not go demand and supply, renewable or prices, but of something much more picturesque: earlier than the month, on Thursday 3 to be precise, some operators located near Aikenin South Carolina, a wasps nest with a radiation level ten times higher to what federal regulations allow. The authorities insist In any case where there is no risk. Where did they find it? Near a radioactive waste tank Savannah River Sitea nuclear material processing center located in South Carolina, next to the Savannah River, and that rose to mid -last century to refine useful materials for weapons creation. The NBC chain states that in its day, at the beginning of the cold war, it was used to manufacture the plutonium nuclei necessary to mount nuclear pumps. Now the installation is dedicated to other works, such as fuel production for nuclear centrals and cleaning tasks, but some sources They point that has generated More than 625 million Of liters of nuclear waste, an amount more than considerable that, once processed, it stayed at around 129 million. 43 underground tanks remain in use. OTHER EIGHT ARE CLOSED. What did they do with the nest? They sprayed him with insecticide, they removed him and discarded him as a radioactive residue. Finally the team prepared A reporta document that took more than expected because its authors dedicated themselves to review Previous cases of fauna pollution to be sure of your criteria. The document concludes that “more actions on the land” are necessary. Is anything else known? Yes. To begin with that they only found the loop, No wasps. Aiken Standard Clarify In any case that if insects had been located, they would probably present quite lower pollution levels. The same newspaper indicates that, after detecting the nest, the radiological control operating staff (RCO) inspected the surroundings without identifying more pollution or threats to the workers. The area in which the nest appeared is inside the plant, where underground steel tanks and several meters deep are preserved. The CNN chain collect Savannah River Mission Completion statements that rule out that there is a risk that the wasps created by the loop can fly outside their facilities. The reason: the normal thing is that they do not move too far from their nests. How is it possible? That is the million dollar question. The report speaks of “inherited radioactive pollution” and “not related to a loss of control”. The event would therefore be explained by the residual radioactivity That remained when the center was fully operational, not for possible leaks. The text in any case does not seem to have satisfied the Savannah River Site Watch surveillance team, which considers that it is incomplete because it does not detail where pollution came from or how exactly came to insects. “I am furious because SRS did not explain where radioactive waste comes from or if there is any type of escape in the tanks that the public must know,” Recognize Tom Clementsgroup manager. One of the keys would be the type of nest, since not all wasps use the same materials to create their homes. Images | ILJA NEDILKO (UNSPLASH), Flo (Unspash) and Duncan Sánchez (UNSPLASH) In Xataka | Madrid suffered a rocambolesco nuclear accident in 1970. So the authorities began to collect vegetables

Spain thought its position regarding the closure of nuclear. That has just changed

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The debate on a possible extension of nuclear plants has returned to the scene and has turned on the media focus. The electricity insists on lengthening their operation beyond the expected, but the executive denies that formal negotiations are being maintained and refers to the conditions that already set as essential. A letter and three conditions. Iberdrola and Endesa sent a joint letter to the government will make more or less a month. In it, they proposed to reopen the debate on the progressive closure of the nuclear park – which contemplates the shutdown of the Seven reactors between 2027 and 2035– With the argument that maintaining operational some centrals would reduce the cost of electricity for consumers. According to the countrythe Government responded by another letter signed by the Ecological Transition Minister, Sara Aagesen, opening to assess the proposal under three immovable conditions: that there is no additional cost for citizens, that the security of the supply is guaranteed and that the plants comply with the standards of the Nuclear Safety Council. So far they “dialogue.” According to eldiario.esthe government considers the letter of electricity as a declaration of intentions, not a formal request. In addition, Naturgy and EDP – also minority owners of some plants – did not sign the document, which leaves Iberdrola and Endesa alone. The debate intensifies. The situation is complex for a primary reason that is not technical, but the economic viability of nuclear. As the confidential explainedelectricity consider that operating with the current fiscal charge is unfeasible if the market price does not exceed € 65-70/MWh. In contrast, projected prices are around € 55/MWh by 2030. In this context, the Endesa CEO, José Bogas, raises the government a fiscal reduction, especially autonomic taxes (such as the one already eliminated in the Valencian Community) and the Enresa rate, which finances the dismantling of the centrals and waste management. However, according to the miteco, this fiscal reduction would involve damage to citizens, and therefore clashes frontally with their red lines. Almaraz, the first thermometer. The immediate focus is at the Almaraz nuclear power plant (Cáceres), whose first reactor must close in November 2027 and the second in October 2028. Iberdrola, Endesa and Naturgy – his three owners – have not yet met to approve the necessary investments that would allow their operation beyond those dates. The meeting scheduled for June has not been held, and sector sources admit that it will not occur before September. Meanwhile, companies prepare a new proposal that, According to El Confidencialcould be presented after summer at a meeting not yet confirmed with Minister Aagesen. The plan would be to offer a tax reduction in exchange for prolonging the activity of some centrals until 2030. However, the Ministry insists: if the conditions do not change, there will be no negotiation. A hot topic in Congress. The debate is more than served from the political field. On the one hand, the Popular Party preparing one Law proposition to extend the life of nuclear. The proposal would have the support of several regional governments of the PP – as Extremadura and Community Valencian – and the parliamentary support of Junts and ERC, which have shown flexibility in Congress in relation to the revision of the nuclear calendar. However, the government has reaffirmed its position. As El Confidencial recalledPresident Pedro Sánchez was bluntly in Congress last May, accusing PP and Vox of acting as “amateur lobists” of the electric. “If companies want to keep the centrals open, they pay them, not the citizens,” he settled. Facing an ambivalent European framework. In addition, the legal position of nuclear energy in the EU adds complexity, since European regulations do not consider nuclear energy as a renewable source. This is established by Directive 2018/2001 (Red II), a vision that has also adopted Spanish legislation. However, in 2022, the European Commission took a partial turn by including this technology, under certain conditions, In the so -called “green taxonomy”next to the natural gas. This classification allows certain nuclear investments to be labeled as sustainable from the climate point of view. As Miguel Huarte expanded has indicatedthis places the nuclear in a normative gray area: it is not renewable, but free of emission in its operation. And while France or Belgium have already chosen to extend their atomic parks, Spain maintains the opposite course. Accelerating another route. At the same time, the miteco has processed this July 31 a new Royal Decree by urgent route to reinforce the electrical system. As you have indicated in a press releaseit is a technical standard that does not directly address the nuclear calendar, but it does signal to a reinforcement of the electrical system by means of supervision, electrification of the demand and promotion of energy storage. Among other measures, the proposal increases the technical control of Electricity and CNMC, promotes renewable hybridization with storage systems and limits speculation on connection points. Although the text does not mention the nuclear, it reinforces the idea that the government bet remains clear: moving towards a 100% renewable mix. A door ajar. The crossing of cards between electric and government has served more to draw red lines than to open doors. What is played, beyond the kilowatt, is the country’s energy model: one where renewables are implacable and nuclear tries to scratch time under the promise of stability. But as well He has pointed the newspaper.Without a formal proposal and without an explicit resignation to tax privileges, electricity will continue to wait at the gates of a ministry that, for now, remains firm: either they meet the conditions, or the closing calendar will continue its course. The future of Almaraz – and perhaps that of the entire nuclear park – will be decided, if, after summer. And with many more letters even to play. Image | Foronuclear Xataka | Spain was supposed to have a “antiapagones” plan. It has encountered an insurmountable obstacle: politics

The good news for Russia is that the earthquake occurred in a remote area. The bad is that he concentrated his nuclear submarines

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Yesterday we woke up with the news of A historical earthquake In an area of the planet that you had not heard in life. Makes sense, Kamchatka It is located at the easiest end of the Russian Eastern Eastern region, such an inhospitable place that has a “good” side of history: we had to tell human casualties in Russia. However, and due precisely to its geographical situation, that is where Moscow keeps part of Its nuclear arsenal. The epicenter of Russian underwater power. Yes, the Magnitude 8.8 earthquake who shook Kamchatka’s peninsula, one of the more powerful registered In modern history, he has put one of Russia’s most sensitive military facilities under the international focus: the naval bases of Avacha Bay. The movement, which generated tsunami waves in the Pacific and coincided with the eruption of the klyuchevskaya sopka volcanothere was only 100 kilometers from the heart of Russian nuclear deterrent power in the Far East. Although the Moscow authorities assure that There are no fatalities No serious damage, doubts revolve around the real state of Rybachiy, the main base of Russian strategic submarinesand from the Naval Complex of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. Rybachiy: the bastion of nuclear deterrence. The Rybachiy base It houses the backbone of the underwater strategic fleet of Russia in the Pacific Ocean: The SSBN of the Borei and Borei-A classsuccessors of Ancient Deltacapable of carrying intercontinental ballistic missiles with nuclear heads. This installation, complemented by shipyards and missile load springs, represents a Central Piece of the Triad Russian nuclear, designed to guarantee the ability to retaliate in case of global conflict. In the area they also operate advanced attack submarines, like Yasen-M (indicated by the United States as one of the main threats under water), in addition to Oscar units and other submersibles of nuclear or conventional propulsion. The vulnerability of these assets in the face of extreme natural phenomena now generates serious unknowns. The Belgorod factor and the possesson weapon. To uncertainty is added the fact that Russia plans to move to Mysterious K-329 Belgorod To this same base. This submarine, the longest in the world, is a deep version Modified of the Oscar II class conceived to transport intercontinental nuclear torpedoes Poseidona strategic system also baptized as Status-6, designed to mock defenses and generate radioactive tsunamis. In addition, Belgorod is designed for underwater intelligence missions and undercover operations. The mere possibility that it would be in Avacha Bay during the earthquake The strategic interest of the natural catastrophe. Immediate technical risks and facilities. At the moment there is no clear evidence of damage to infrastructure or docked units. Bay’s own geography could have acted As a natural shield against the impact of the waves. However, they pointed out the Twz analysts that even minor variations of the sea level can cause critical problems: from submarines, violently hitting their ties (incidents known as Allision) until the entry of water in open gates or in ships subjected to maintenance. The robustness of the facilities, built with the hypothesis of an attack Nuclear in mind, reinforces the thesis that the damage has been limited, but does not completely eliminate uncertainty. The problem of concentrating a point. Beyond the punctual situation, the earthquake It exposes a structural dilemma: the risk of concentrating a substantial part of the Russian nuclear deterrence in a confined geographical enclave. The Avacha Baywith its shipyards, arsenals and strategic units, it constitutes a critical objective both from the military and natural point of view. The threat of an enemy attack was planned in design of the bases, but not that of a seismic phenomenon of historical magnitudescapable of questioning the safety of a key piece of the Russian nuclear triad. Strategic implications. In the background, the episode demonstrates how the stability of the world nuclear arsenal can depend on unpredictable natural factors. A single earthquake, in Second issueyou can compromise operability of strategic submarines whose function is to ensure the balance of nuclear terror. The fact that Kamchatka combines geological vulnerabilities With military assets In addition, the fragility inherent in global deterrence systems reveals. The international community, and especially the rival nuclear powers, will carefully observe the reports that emerge from Moscow, aware that nature, unlike strategic calculations, is impossible to deter. Image | Russian Ministry of Defense In Xataka | Iceland has a key Atlantic corridor for Russia. So the US has sent its first nuclear submarine In Xataka | A British nuclear submarine has discovered a Russian ship in front of its submarine cables. The second time in three months

The earthquake has revived the fear of a new Fukushima. This time, nuclear power plants are armed to teeth

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The red tsunami alert issued on the coast of Japan after a strong earthquake in Russia has served as a raw reminder of the 2011 disaster. Japanese televisions cut their usual programming to show an unequivocal order in capital letters: “Tsunami! Evacuate!“The message, shouted in unison by the presenters, resonated with those of 14 years ago. But this time, the nuclear power plants were much better prepared. Context. For millions of Japanese, The scene that was lived this Wednesday It was too familiar. The collective memory immediately returned to March 11, 2011, when an earthquake of magnitude 9 unleashed a tsunami that not only charged about 20,000 lives, but caused the worst nuclear accident of the 21st century in the Fukushima central. Yesterday, the workers of the own Fukushima plant They suspended their tasks and evacuated the nuclear power plant towards higher land, knowing that nuclear safety has suffered a radical transformation. The global nuclear industry not only learned Fukushima’s lessons: it made them concrete, steel and new protocols on an unprecedented scale. The turning point. To understand the magnitude of the changes, we must remember what exactly failed in Fukushima-Daiichi. The disaster It was not caused directly by the earthquakebut for the tsunami that followed. Waves of up to 15 meters far exceeded the containment wall of the plant, flooding the emergency diesel generators and cutting all the plant power of the plant. Without capacity to refrigerate reactors, Three of the nuclei merged. The lesson was brutal: the security margins, designed for probable events, were insufficient before an extreme event. Fukushima was a global attention call that unleashed a regulatory and technical revolution. The paradigm shift is summarized in moving from a probabilist approach (designing for what is expected) to a total resilience (being ready for the unexpected). Not only in Japan. Immediately after the accident, regulators around the world launched A thorough review of its facilities, creating international frames to ensure that the lessons learned will be applied everywhere. China and the United States They promoted strategies so that all nuclear power plants can support an indefinite loss of energy. In Europe, all plants passed Stress tests against earthquakes, floods and total loss of security systems, forcing each country to implement a national action plan in case of finding defects. Gravelines, the largest nuclear power plant in France, reinforced his dike and added new gates Mobile Concrete and steel. Japanese centrals have been working like none, investing billions of dollars. They sealed all possible water input routes with stagnant doors, installed high capacity Achique pumps and built higher walls. Onagawa, the central closest to the 2011 epicenter, survived thanks to its 14 -meter wall. After Fukushima’s accident, the Tohoku Electric Power energy company did not walk with little girls and built A new 2 meter high dikealmost like a 10 -story building. Hamooka raised his breakwater 22 meters above sea leveland relocated the emergency diesel generators in a hill at 25 meters high. Tokai-2 raised A slope 1.7 kilometers longprepared to resist a wave of 17.1 meters. The reactors of the future. These lessons have also moved to the new designs of third and fourth generation reactors, including compact modular reactors (SMR), which incorporate them as standard. The AP1000 and its Chinese CAP-1000 derivative They can keep safe for 72 hours without any human intervention or external energy thanks to passive cooling systems that work by gravity and convection. The European EPR-2 includes double containment, a filtered vent system and A “Core-Catcher” Designed to contain the molten nucleus in the hypothetical case of an accident. And the Nuscale or the BWRX-300 of Gen-Hitachi can be installed as underground reactors, which makes them intrinsically immune to tsunamis and other surface disasters. A safer world. Wednesday’s Tsunami alert is a reminder that we are still at the mercy of nature. But also an opportunity to verify that, in the 14 years that have passed since Fukushima, the defenses of nuclear power plants have become a real fortress. The 2011 disaster was not in vain. Image | IAEA In Xataka | People did not take the drills seriously, so Japan found something much more effective: video game drills

It is not that the US has warned Russia about Ukraine, is that it has just sent nuclear bombs up to 50 kilotons to Europe

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And, suddenly, Washington left slightly from the rhetoric that had prevailed in the last months in his conversations with Moscow. Trump raised the tone giving Putin a really short maximum period, 10 to 12 days, to agree on a High fire in Ukraine or “face more severe sanctions.” We would say that few people interpreted the message beyond an economic issue. However, the facts also speak of a nuclear movement. Satiety. Yes, Trump It hardened his position in front of Moscow by drastically shortening the deadline granted to Putin to agree on that alleged fire in Ukraine: of the 50 days initially announced to only 10 or 12, warning that, if an agreement is not reached, it will impose more harsh secondary sanctions that will hit Russia and the countries that buy their oil. From his resort in Scotland and together with the British prime minister Keir Starmer, the US president was “very disappointed” with Putin, ensuring that he no longer trusts his conversations, because as long as they speak “people die in missile attacks.” The turn reflects an evolution in your speech, more favorable to Zelenski From his encounter at the NATO Summit, and responds to the intensification of the Russian offensive in the Eastern Front and the increase in drone swarming attacks. But there is much more. Kilotones Actually, it is a confirmation of What we count Last week after the appearance of a military emblem that left little doubt. Now it has been Bloomberg The one that has put name and capabilities to action. We talk about the reappearance of nuclear weapons in the United States in British soilfor the first time Since 2008in an unequivocal gesture to Moscow in full climb of tensions. The episode was known thanks to a flight recorded on July 16, when A C-17 plane of the American Air Force, belonging to the Nuclear Prime Airlift Force (Specialized unit in the transport of nuclear weapons), moved from the base of Kirtland in New Mexico to Lakenheath, in eastern England. The remarkable thing is that he did it with The transpondent onallowing their route to be publicly observed, which Analysts interpret as A direct message Putin that Washington not only maintains its commitment to European security, but is willing to reinforce it visibly. Not even. Both the Pentagon and the British Ministry of Defense maintain the traditional policy of Do not confirm or deny The presence of these weapons, but the accumulated evidence, together with Budget documents that detail nuclear safety works in Lakenheath, it indicates that it is a very real transfer of Ojivas B61-12the latest generation of American thermonuclear bombs. Transport of a b61-12 pump The importance of B61-12. It We have counted These months. The armament in question, The B61-12it is a modernized free fall pump model with a variable load that goes from 0.3 to 50 kilotons and incorporates precision guidance systems, which makes it more flexible compared to previous versions. This adaptability allows us to use it both against specific military and urban areas, giving it an added strategic value. His deployment in the United Kingdom also reintroduces a nuclear mission for the Royal Air Force that had disappeared After the cold warwhen London withdrew their own nuclear aviation weapons. The British Ministry of Defense had already advanced that it will acquire at least twelve f-35a fighters, Specifically designed to carry this type of pumps, which places the RAF again in the center of NATO nuclear deterrence. Tighten the button. With Lakenheath They already add seven bases distributed in Six European countries that house American tactical nuclear weapons under the supreme command of Washington, since the use of these weapons, even deployed in allied territory, always requires the direct authorization of the president of the United States. Impact on NATO nuclear strategy. What doubt fits, the Nuclear Weapons Return British soil is not a simple symbolic gesture, but a sign that the Atlantic Alliance is adjusting its deterrent to respond to tactical nuclear imbalance With Russiawhich has a wide arsenal of short -range weapons. The introduction of the B61-12 offers NATO greater operational flexibility, expanding the response options and partially compensating for the Russian advantage in the European theater. Analysts as Sidharth Kaoushal They emphasize that this modernization constitutes a way of limiting the effects of Russian superiority on non -strategic nuclear armament, while experts as Hans Kristensen They insist that the movement confirms the real deployment of this new type of weapons in Europe, a step with deep consequences in the dynamics of deterrence. The political context. Plus: The transfer of these bombs coincides with a Turrous turn in Trump’s policy towards Putin. The US president, after weeks of friction, has approved New deliveries from Patriot missiles to Ukraine, presses Moscow with the threat of secondary sanctions and has unilaterally shortened the deadline for Russia to accept the fire. In this context, maintaining the lighting of the lighting flight acquires a sense of clear warning: The United States is not only withdrawing forces from Europe, but increases its nuclear response capacity in the region. In this way, Washington seeks to reaffirm both before Russia and before European allies that their commitment to nuclear deterrence is still firm and visible. Strategic implications. It is the last of the legs to analyze. The reintroduction of American nuclear weapons in the United Kingdom after more than a decade of absence it cannot be interpreted as an isolated event, but as part of a remodeling of European security architecture. It means returning to London a central role in NATO’s nuclear mission, reactivating the Air nuclear capacity of the RAF and increase the range of military options of the alliance against the growing Russian threat. The brand movement A substantial reinforcement of the transatlantic link in the field of nuclear defense and, at the same time, sends a warning calculated to Moscow: any perception of nuclear advantage In Europe it will be answered with new deployments and with a reaffirmation of … Read more

You can hardly know what is in these boxes. The US has built the perfect hiding place for its nuclear weapons

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A company in the United States came to nuclear proportions, literally. The Pentagon had been going around an idea for a while. In a war scenario every time more changing and asymmetricthe permanent bases have stopped making sense to save, for example, atomic weapons. Where to hide such arsenal? The solution is in a container. Store the unthinkable. Yes, the United States has developed an innovative storage technology to transform the way their nuclear weapons are deployed: a Mobile vault system hidden within standard six -meter containers, capable of protecting atomic pumps or highly sensitive materials even in remote and temporary bases. The project, led By Sandia National Laboratories Within the energy department, it responds to an urgent request from the National Nuclear Safety Administration (Nsa) and is being executed in collaboration with the Department of Defense. The purpose: to provide American commanders with an unprecedented logistics and tactical capacity to protect strategic assets outside the immediate reach of permanent infrastructure. Accelerated and double use. The development of the first prototype was carried out in just six months, through a design process that prioritized speed and performance within volumetric and weight restrictions. For this I know They used 3D modelsadditive manufacturing, reusable components and commercial development plates. The available images They show a container with a reinforced door with double combination lock, although it is presumed that it includes multiple unleashed advanced safety systems. Sandia has experience in this field: he already developed specialized trucks To transport nuclear weapons, equipped with defense mechanisms such as adhesive foam to immobilize intruders, explosive bolts to disable tear gas axes and systems. Sandia employees make a 3D scan of a container prototype Containers that hint. Although for obvious reasons the official statement avoids explicitly mentioning nuclear weapons, Sandia has distributed models at 1:14 of these mobile vaults with miniature aftershocks of b61 bombs Clearly identifiable destined to illustrate its functionality before the high controls of the Pentagon, the strategic command and the combat commands. This type of device could be revolutionary for the projection of the nuclear arsenal, since it would allow flexible displaysdiscreet and fast in areas without fixed infrastructure, in line with current doctrines of Agile Fuat Employment (Ace) of the Air Force and the Expeditional Advanced Base Operations (Eabo) of the Marines body. In both strategies, dispersion, unpredictability and mobility are key to survive in a modern combat environment. A look at the 1:14 scale model of the mobile vault and the “miniature model” of the B61 The logic of the new B61-13. Plus: doctrinal change also coincides with the production of the new Model B61-13an improved variant of the B61-12 with greater explosive performance. Although the B61-12 already incorporated precision guidance, not all NATO platforms are trained to use that technology, which limits its operation. The B61-13, due to their greater capacity to attack reinforced and distributed targets, could be better used in mobile and flexible display. Also and As we countB61 are already part of the nuclear arsenal advanced in Europestored in underground fixed vaults in bases such as The RAF Lakenheathin the United Kingdom. The incorporation of are Mobile Vaults It now expands the tactical fan to more unpredictable and scattered environments, reducing the dependence of bases that would be a priority white in a high intensity conflict. A trailer loaded with B61 test models, as well as B83 nuclear bombs, (the latter are seen at the right end) “Mobile” advantages and risks. The use of standard containers to hide these vaults has evident advantages Logistics: They can be transported by air, sea or land using existing means. But that same mobility entails new challenges. Namely: structures offer Less physical protection That a bunker, and any increase in peripheral security measures could give away its content. They pointed to them Twz analysts which will be required, quite possibly, a completely new operational doctrine for use in nuclear deployments, which includes camouflage, dispersion, remote control and active safety measures. Of the test field to the nuclear deployment. The first prototypes will be evaluated in the exercise Gray Flag 2025where the Department of Defense and Sandia will prove its usefulness in a simulated operational context. In fact, this series of maneuvers has been the advanced armament exhibition scenario, such as long-range air-air missile AIM-174B (version released from airplanes SM-6 missile), still classified. The presence of nuclear weapons (or their fictional equivalents) in these trials suggests that Mobile Vaults They could quickly integrate into New forms of deterrenceespecially in mixed missions with closely linked conventional and nuclear abilities, as the recent anticipates Pentagon doctrine. Logistics Revolution As a last point, the initiative It also contemplates the future transition from this technology to the private sector, possibly for its industrial production and use in other areas that require ultraseguro storage. Be that as it may, its immediate function points to the heart of the current strategic debate: How to maintain the credibility of American nuclear arsenal in a multipolar world, full of mobile threats (as seen in conflicts of Ukraine and Iran), Access denial areas and potential conflicts in remote scenarios. In that new theater, it will not only be the weapons that move with agility. They will also do it, these mobile vaults apparently nuclear. Image | Sandia National Laboratories In Xataka | A simple drawing in a currency has revealed something more important: the return of nuclear bombs to Europe In Xataka | Satellite images leave no doubt: Russia is expanding up to five secret nuclear bases

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