Going Nuclear

1. Nuclear Fission: A Potent, Clean Energy Source

Thinking in terms of atoms turns everyday objects into miniature universes.

Unlocking atomic power. At the heart of all matter lies the nucleus, a dense kernel of protons and neutrons. Nuclear science explores these subatomic particles and their powerful interactions. Splitting the nucleus of certain atoms, like uranium-235, through a process called nuclear fission, releases immense energy. This energy, governed by Einstein's E=mc², is millions of times greater than that released by chemical reactions like burning fossil fuels.

Controlled chain reactions. Nuclear reactors harness this power by orchestrating self-sustaining fission chain reactions. When a neutron strikes a uranium atom, it splits, releasing energy and more neutrons. These "neutron sparks" can then split other atoms, creating a cascade. By carefully controlling these reactions with "neutron poisons" and "moderators" (like water or graphite), reactors generate steady, on-demand heat, which is then converted into emissions-free electricity.

Energy density unmatched. The sheer energy density of nuclear fuel is astounding. A grape-sized pellet of uranium can generate as much electricity as a tonne of coal. This means a typical nuclear reactor, burning just 30 tonnes of uranium annually, can power over a million people. This efficiency translates to minimal fuel consumption and, consequently, very little waste for enormous energy output.

2. Net Zero Demands Reliable, Emissions-Free Energy

To achieve net zero and give society the energy that allows it to flourish, we must reject rash policy decisions based on alarmism and magical thinking.

The energy challenge. Achieving net zero by 2050 requires a radical transformation of our energy systems, moving away from fossil fuels that currently meet over 80% of global demand and cause 95% of carbon emissions. This isn't just about electricity; it's about decarbonizing buildings, transport, and industry through electrification and green hydrogen. This shift will dramatically increase electricity demand, necessitating massive amounts of emissions-free, affordable, and reliable energy.

Renewables' intermittence. While wind and solar power are emissions-free at the point of generation, their inherent unreliability is a critical flaw. They depend entirely on weather conditions, leading to unpredictable output. When the wind doesn't blow or the sun doesn't shine, grids must fall back on fossil fuels (often gas or coal) to meet demand, creating a perverse dance where carbon emissions increase during calm weather.

Storage limitations. Storing surplus renewable energy to compensate for intermittence is currently impractical and prohibitively expensive at grid scale.

• Pumped hydro storage is geographically limited and offers only hours of backup.
• Battery technology, while improving, would require trillions of dollars and vast land areas for just a day's worth of backup.
• Green hydrogen storage is inefficient, losing about 70% of energy in conversion.
  This means over-reliance on intermittent renewables locks us into fossil fuel dependency, jeopardizing energy security and economic stability.

3. Nuclear Power Outperforms Renewables on Key Metrics

Nuclear power stations churn out electricity on calm, cloudy days, and at night.

Unmatched reliability. Nuclear reactors boast the highest capacity factor of all power sources, typically around 86%, meaning they operate almost continuously. This on-demand reliability eliminates the need for costly and impractical storage solutions required by intermittent renewables. Nuclear power stations can also adjust their output to match demand, providing crucial grid stability.

Minimal environmental footprint. Nuclear power is by far the most concentrated source of electricity, requiring significantly less land than renewables.

• A single nuclear power station can power a city the size of London on just one square kilometer.
• Solar farms require 240% more land than nuclear for the same energy output.
• Wind power requires 160-340% more land than nuclear.
  This minimal land use preserves wild spaces, biodiversity, and agricultural land, making nuclear power one of the gentlest energy sources on the environment.

Lower mineral intensity. The transition to emissions-free energy will dramatically increase demand for critical minerals. While all energy sources require mining, nuclear power is significantly less mineral-intensive than renewables.

• Wind power requires 160-340% more rock to be mined than nuclear.
• Solar power requires 240% more rock to be mined than nuclear.
  This reduces the environmental devastation associated with mining and lessens geopolitical vulnerabilities tied to mineral supply chains, which are often concentrated in a few nations.

4. Nuclear Waste: A Manageable Resource, Not a Problem

The boring truth about nuclear waste is that it just isn’t much of a problem.

Minimal volume, concentrated hazard. Nuclear power generates very little waste compared to its enormous energy output. All the high-level nuclear waste produced globally over 70 years would fit into a cube just 33 meters across. While highly radioactive, this concentration makes it easier to manage. Low-level waste, like lab equipment, is barely radioactive and accounts for most of the volume but only 1% of total radioactivity.

Decay over time. All radioactive waste naturally becomes less radioactive over time due to half-life decay. Short-lived fission fragments, which account for 99% of spent fuel's radioactivity, wither within 4 years. Longer-lived transuranic elements, created when uranium-238 absorbs neutrons, remain radioactive for tens of thousands of years, but their hazard is concentrated and contained.

Sustainable solutions exist. Geological disposal, like Finland's Onkalo facility, involves burying high-level waste deep underground in stable bedrock for 100,000 years, where it is isolated from the environment. Alternatively, recycling spent fuel, as France does, extracts valuable uranium and plutonium, reducing the volume and radioactivity of waste while generating more energy. Breeder reactors can even incinerate long-lived transuranics and create more fuel than they consume, making nuclear power essentially renewable on human timescales.

5. Radiation: Misunderstood and Over-Feared

Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood.

Ubiquitous and harmless. Every human is constantly bathed in natural background radiation from cosmic rays, rocks, food, and even their own bodies. This exposure, typically 2.4 millisieverts annually, is utterly harmless. Even in naturally high-radiation areas like Colorado or parts of India, where doses can be 30 times the global average, no increased cancer risk has been definitively proven.

Nuclear's negligible contribution. Human activities, including atomic bomb tests and nuclear power generation, contribute a minuscule amount to overall radiation exposure. Living near a nuclear power station adds only about 3 days' worth of background radiation annually. Paradoxically, coal-fired power plants release more radiation into the environment per kilowatt-hour than nuclear power.

Safety record speaks volumes. Nuclear power is one of the safest energy sources, comparable to wind and solar, and orders of magnitude safer than fossil fuels and biomass.

• Chernobyl, despite its mythical status, caused around 50 confirmed deaths, with a few hundred more possible long-term thyroid cancer fatalities.
• Fukushima, a decade later, resulted in only one confirmed radiation-induced death, with over 2,300 deaths attributed to the unnecessary evacuation driven by radiophobia.
  The psychological impact of radiophobia has often been more damaging than the radiation itself, leading to unnecessary fear and misguided policy decisions.

6. Nuclear Technology: Beyond Power Generation

By treating it with due care and respect – and a dash of creative flare – scientists and engineers today use radiation to solve problems in novel ways.

Medical marvels. Radiation is a cornerstone of modern medicine, used for both diagnosis and treatment.

• X-rays and PET scans (using positron-emitting isotopes like fluorine-18) provide non-invasive imaging for broken bones and cancerous tumors.
• Radiotherapy uses targeted gamma beams to destroy malignant cells.
• Nuclear medicines, like iodine-131 for thyroid cancer or lutetium-177 for prostate cancer, deliver radioactive isotopes directly to cancer cells, offering precision treatment.
  Future "targeted alpha therapies" using isotopes like actinium-225 promise even more precise and potent cancer destruction with minimal collateral damage.

Agricultural innovation. Atomic gardening uses gamma rays to induce genetic mutations in plants, accelerating selective breeding. This has led to "super-crops" with enhanced yields, disease resistance, and improved nutritional value, helping to alleviate poverty and food insecurity globally without making plants radioactive.

Pest control and conservation. Radiation sterilizes male insects, preventing them from reproducing and eradicating pest populations without harmful insecticides. This "sterile insect technique" has successfully eliminated screwworms from vast regions and is being explored for mosquitoes. Nuclear science is also being used to deter poachers by making rhino horns radioactive, rendering them worthless and traceable.

7. Nuclear Weapons: A Declining, Yet Persistent Threat

A war between two nations where a few hundred atomic bombs were exchanged in quick succession over urban areas could cool the Earth by up to 5 ºC and curtail rainfall severely.

The atomic age's dark side. The discovery of fission quickly led to the development of atomic bombs, culminating in the devastating blasts over Hiroshima and Nagasaki. These weapons, and later hydrogen bombs, possess unimaginable destructive power, capable of causing global catastrophe and "nuclear winter." The initial atomic arms race saw stockpiles soar to over 65,000 bombs by 1986.

Disarmament progress. Fortunately, the global atomic bomb stockpile has declined by 85% since its peak, largely due to arms control agreements between the US and Russia. The Partial Test Ban Treaty (1963) and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (1996) have significantly reduced nuclear testing, especially above ground, limiting fallout.

Non-proliferation efforts. The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (1968) is the most widely adopted arms control treaty, aiming to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, promote peaceful nuclear technology, and encourage disarmament. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) acts as a global watchdog, using nuclear forensics to detect illicit activities and ensure materials are not diverted for weapons. The "Megatons to Megawatts" program, which converted Russian weapons-grade uranium into fuel for US power plants, exemplifies successful non-proliferation.

8. Nuclear Power: Key to Humanity's Spacefaring Future

Unshackled from solar dependency, plutonium-238 lets us go anywhere.

Powering deep space. Nuclear batteries, powered by the alpha decay of plutonium-238, have enabled humanity's exploration of the outer solar system, where sunlight is too weak for solar panels. These long-lasting, reliable power sources have driven missions like Voyager 1 and 2, Galileo, Cassini, and New Horizons, providing electricity for instruments and communications for decades.

Lunar and Martian habitats. For long-duration human missions and permanent extraterrestrial habitats, nuclear reactors are indispensable. Micro-nuclear reactors can provide tens of thousands to millions of watts of reliable power, crucial for life support, heating, water extraction from lunar ice, and producing rocket fuel. This technology will enable sustained human presence on the Moon and eventually Mars, transforming humanity into an interplanetary species.

Faster space travel. Chemical rockets, while powerful for launch, are limited by their energy density for deep-space travel. Nuclear rockets, which use a miniature reactor to heat liquid hydrogen for thrust, offer vastly superior performance. They can cut travel times to Mars almost in half, significantly reducing astronaut exposure to cosmic radiation and the psychological and physiological stresses of long journeys.

9. Embrace Nuclear for a Prosperous, Sustainable Future

Building nuclear power stations and circularising their fuel cycles with breeder reactors – starting now, and in earnest – is the single biggest environmental step we could take.

Beyond the "appeal to nature" fallacy. A common misconception is that "natural" solutions are inherently good, while "unnatural" ones are bad. This fallacy often leads to opposing nuclear power in favor of renewables, despite nuclear's superior performance in reliability, land use, and mineral intensity. Human civilization's greatest achievements, from medicine to space travel, are "unnatural" yet profoundly beneficial.

A path to abundance. Nuclear power offers a unique combination of energy abundance, reliability, and minimal environmental impact. It can meet surging global energy demands, electrify society, and produce green hydrogen without contributing to carbon emissions or air pollution. This allows for continued human progress and rising living standards, especially in developing nations, without sacrificing environmental stewardship.

A call to action. The world faces an urgent climate crisis, yet apathy and radiophobia hinder the widespread adoption of nuclear power. Leaders must overcome ideological opposition and invest in a massive rollout of conventional and advanced nuclear technologies, including small modular reactors and breeder reactors. This "Apollo program" for decarbonization would not only secure our energy future but also inspire a new generation to pursue scientific and technological solutions for a better world.

Last updated: August 7, 2025