The program description:
In 1986, in the heart of Ukraine, the Chernobyl nuclear reactor exploded, releasing 400 times more radiation than the Hiroshima Bomb. It was the world’s worst nuclear disaster. Thirty workers died, 50,000 people fled the nearest city, and radioactive fallout made an area larger than Long Island a no-go zone. Hastily, a so-called “sarcophagus” was built to contain the radioactive materials that lingered at the site after the explosion. But 30 years later, the sarcophagus is crumbling, and another disaster at Chernobyl looms. Now, an international team of engineers is racing the clock to assemble one of the most ambitious superstructures ever built—an extraordinary 40,000 ton, $1.5 billion dome to encase the crumbling remains of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor. Battling arctic winter weather—and lethal radiation—this is the inside story of the epic race to build Chernobyl’s MegaTomb.
IT's a fascinating story. The hastily constructed "sarcophagus" was crumbling. 350,000 people were drafted and forced to work constructing it, but in some areas they could only spend 45 seconds before their maximum radiation exposure was reached. The "sarcophagus" took six months to build, weighed 300,000 tons, and the radiation prevented completing the welds that would have sealed the concrete. What's worse, it was constructed without any proper foundation, all the weight was perched on top of the reactor itself. They knew it was limited to no more than 30 years of life, and must be covered.
Before:
The original "Sarcophagus":
Now, the new stainless arch with conditioned interior air:
Worth your time to watch, here's an online link if you can't catch it on your DVR in the repeat broadcast tomorrow May 9th:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/chernobyls-megatomb.html
