Events: Activities around the world will include:
- A dinner and showcase of international nuclear energy presented on December 1 by Innovate Australia, which will feature Jim Scherrer, coordinator, of World Nuclear Energy Day; John Harries, secretary and past resident of the Australian Nuclear Association; Ross Elliott, executive adviser and director of business development in Australia for StarCore Nuclear; Robert Parker, founder, of Nuclear For Climate Australia; and Warren McKenzie, founder and managing director of HB11 Energy. The event will be moderated by Peter Kasprzak, chairman of Innovate Australia. Registration is required.
- An online meeting on the book “Before Oppenheimer, There Was Wilhelm,” by Teresa Wilhelm Waldof. The presentation will focus on Harley Wilhelm, a chemistry professor at Iowa State College, who provided the core uranium for the Chicago Pile 1 reactor on December 2, 1942. Wilhelm then invented the mass production process, the Ames Process, still in use today. Learn how Wilhelm accomplished what others had not, enduring explosions, fires, and other obstacles while producing the uranium needed for Oak Ridge to go live and for the Manhattan Project to succeed. Join the presentation link on Zoom here: Before Oppenheimer, There Was Wilhelm and use passcode WNED.
- A public tour on December 2 of the Brunswick nuclear power plant, in Southport, N.C. Jay Ratliff, plant manager, said that World Nuclear Day is all about showing the public the benefits of nuclear power. “It’s more about educating folks about the benefits of nuclear energy and the clean aspects of carbon-free electricity,” he said.
- A Google Meet from 11 a.m. to 12 noon (Pacific Time) on December 2 with the Mothers for Nuclear, hosted by Heather Hoff, Kristin Zaitz, and Ryan Pickering. The meeting will include a discussion and educational presentation on getting the message to the public about the transformative, positive benefits of the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant. A recording of the meeting will be available for sharing by using this link:https://meet.google.com/wff-xddx-wmq
Other activities can be found here.
December 2: The date was selected to acknowledge both the first date for a self-sustaining chain reaction and the date of the start-up of the first commercial-scale electric power reactor. Fermi’s initial nuclear reactor, named the Chicago Pile-1, became the first to create a self-sustaining chain reaction on December 2, 1942. In tribute to Fermi, the first commercial power reactor, in Shippingport, Pa., went critical on December 2, 1957, 15 years after the Chicago Pile-1 success. (Learn more on YouTube at "Chicago Pile-1: A Brick History".
