Author: Shahili PuLoki
Translators: Song Hong, Cui Rui
Publisher: Guangdong People's Publishing House
Publication date: October 1, 2023
preface
myukraine map There is a mark on it marked asChernobylThe place, this is exactly where we areEight people in a rowThe destination of this journey. Besides myself, there are also colleagues fromHong Kong, ChinaThree students majoring in science and engineering are on a trip to Russia and Eastern Europe. From the accent, we can tell that the remaining three men and one woman are British, all in their early twenties. I immediately learned that the three men were indeed British, and that the woman's name was Amanda, a noble Irishman. They got along very well. What do you think about this?
A few weeks ago,AmandaAsk your British husbandStuartWhen asked what he wanted to do during the upcoming vacation, her husband replied that he wanted to go to Chernobyl. Therefore, they came here accompanied by the Stuart brothers and a family friend. Don't forget to share your experience!
Two online gamesIt is also the source of inspiration for this trip.In a shooting horror survival game called "Stalker: Shadows of Chernobyl", the game story takes place in the Chernobyl nuclear exclusion zone after the fictional second nuclear explosion What do you think about this?InIn another game called Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, the protagonist Colonel Jon Price travels to the abandoned city of Pripyat to hunt down Russian radicals Have you tried this before? Share your story!.
Stuart and his team are going to visit the abandoned city in person.
Our youngUkrainian tour guide VitaFirst, led us toA restricted area within a radius of 30 kilometersThen enter againStricter 10 kilometer restricted zone——These are two concentric circles, one wrapped around the other, that oneThe nuclear power plant is located at the center of two concentric circles with radii of 30 kilometers and 10 kilometers, respectively Don't forget to share your experience!.
We have seen what is calledDuga's Soviet radarIt played an important role in Reagan's strategic defense initiative, the Star Wars program. However, by today's standards, I've found that it's merely a low tech system primarily used for reconnaissance and detection of potential nuclear attacks from the East Coast of the United States. Don't forget to share your experience!
We depart from here and continue on to the small town of Chernobyl and the nuclear power plant, as well as neighboring cities that have become ghost towns What do you think about this?Pripyat JiNearly 50000 construction workers and operators working for nuclear power plants once lived here.
Vita handed over the radiation counter to us, and when the radiation level exceeds the set normal value, the counter will sound an alarm. In some areas, especially in several places near the damaged reactor, the counter keeps ringing. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!Vita subsequently shut down the radiation counter, which was similar to the actions of Soviet workers sent to deal with a nuclear accident in 1986 What do you think about this?They have to do their own work, and the radiation counter shows that the radiation level is unacceptable. Vita also has his own work to do. She told us that staying here for a day would result in the same amount of radiation as a plane passenger would receive in an hour. We trust her guarantee that the radiation level is not astonishingly high. Don't forget to share your experience!
The total amount of nuclear radiation released by the Chernobyl nuclear accident was 50 million curies, equivalent to 500 times the amount of nuclear radiation released by the atomic bomb explosion in Hiroshima, Japan What do you think about this?The catastrophic consequences are simply due to less than 5% of the nuclear fuel leaking from the reactor. Initially, it contained over 113 kilograms of enriched uranium - enough to pollute and destroy much of Europe. Have you tried this before? Share your story!If the other three nuclear reactors at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant are also damaged due to the explosion of the first reactor, all living and breathing organisms will find it difficult to survive on Earth Don't forget to share your experience!.
In the weeks following the accident, scientists and engineers struggled to determine whether there would be even more deadly disasters following the eruption of the radioactive "volcano" in Chernobyl. Even if no worse situation arises, What do you think about this?The radioactive material produced by the first nuclear explosion alone will continue to exist for hundreds of years.
The plutonium-239 produced by this nuclear explosion was blown to Sweden by the wind, and its half-life is 24000 years.
The first public image of the Chernobyl nuclear accident captured by the French SPOT-1 satellite on May 1, 1986 © Images SPOT acquises dans le cadre du programme Spot WorldHeritage du CNES Have you tried this before? Share your story!
Pripyat is sometimes referred to as the contemporary city of PompeyThese two cities are both identical and vastly different, simply because the walls, roofs, and even scattered visible window glass in this Ukrainian city are mostly intact. It was not the roasting and magma caused by volcanic eruptions that consumed life, but the invisible radioactive substances that forced local residents to leave their homes. Most of the plants survived, and wild animals returned to this place, reoccupying the settlement that once belonged to humans. Don't forget to share your experience!
The streets of this city bear a lot of imprints from the Soviet era, and many slogans from the Soviet era can be seen. In an abandoned cinema, a portrait of a communist leader hangs. Our tour guide Vita said that no one knows who the person in the painting is now. Don't forget to share your experience!
When the nuclear disaster occurred, I was a young university professor working in Ukraine. With those memories, I recognized that familiar face, Have you tried this before? Share your story!The person in the painting is Viktor Chebrikov, who served as the Chairman of the KGB from 1982 to 1988This painting has miraculously survived over the past 30 years, except for a small hole next to Chekhov's nose, which remains intact. In addition, the image in the painting is also extremely perfect. Don't forget to share your experience!
Let's keep moving forward.
I secretly speculated in my heart that it was a bit strange for an excellent tour guide like Vita not to know Chekhov. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
On the ceiling of an abandoned Soviet era supermarketThere are signs hanging with words "meat," "milk," and "cheese," and Vita seems a bit confused when explaining their meanings.
She asked, "How could this happen? They always write that the Soviet Union lacks almost everything
I explained that because there was a nuclear power plant in the area, Pripyat enjoyed privileges in many aspects. Compared to the ordinary people at that time, the workers there had access to better agricultural and consumer products. In addition, hanging signs that read "meat," "milk," and "cheese" does not necessarily mean that these foods can actually be purchased. After all, this place used to belong to the Soviet Union, and the gap between the government's propaganda image and reality can only be bridged through ridicule and laughter. What do you think about this?
I suddenly remembered a joke: "If you want to fill your fridge with food, unplug the fridge plug and connect it to the radio." Because the radio always broadcasts about the continuous improvement of living standards, but the fridge has its own story to tell. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
On the way to Pripyat, for those who were elsewhere at that time, butFor those who long to know what happened on this extraordinary night of April 26, 1986, and for those who long to know what happened day and night, year after year, after that, I have decided to write a long work about Chernobyl Let me know your thoughts in the comments!.
Although the Soviet government initially attempted to conceal the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and downplay its consequences, the event still attracted widespread public attention in both the Soviet Union and the West. It was first reported by the media in the first few days of the explosion, followed by the emergence of documentaries, feature films, documentary investigations, and novels. Although the causes, outcomes, and lessons learned from this disaster fall within the scope of historical contextualization and interpretation, few historians have conducted in-depth research on this topic so far. Don't forget to share your experience!
As a historical work, this book provides the first detailed account of the Chernobyl nuclear accident, from the explosion in April 1986, to the closure of the nuclear power plant in December 2000, and the completion of the latest coverage of damaged nuclear reactors in May 2018. Don't forget to share your experience!
At the beginning of my research on Chernobyl, confidential archival materials related to the aforementioned history were released, which greatly benefited my work. Don't forget to share your experience!
The series of political changes in Ukraine in 2014 also triggered the archival revolution, making previously confidential KGB information more publicly available to the world than ever before. More government archives have also been opened to the public, making it easier to access information from that era, including various documents after the nuclear accident. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
I created this book as both a historian and a contemporary of the event. When the nuclear explosion occurred, my residence was located less than 500 kilometers downstream of the damaged nuclear reactor. What do you think about this?
My family and myself have not been directly affected. However, a few years later when I was a visiting scholar in Canada, the doctor said that my thyroid gland was slightly swollen, which was a worrying symptom caused by exposure to radiation. Fortunately, my wife and children are both doing well. What do you think about this?
A classmate of mine in college was sent to Chernobyl as a police officer in the days following an accident, and he had to stay in the hospital for at least a month every year. Have you tried this before? Share your story!
One of my university colleagues also stayed near a nuclear power plant for a while after the explosion, but appeared to be in good health. He is currently teaching Soviet history in the United States. Have you tried this before? Share your story!
Talking to them and other participants in the event, regaining my own memories of the nuclear disaster, this series of actions allows me to better reproduce the thoughts and intentions of those who would rather sacrifice their health or even their lives in order to minimize the adverse consequences of nuclear reactor core melting. Have you tried this before? Share your story!
The further we advance along the timeline of the nuclear disaster, the more mysterious and difficult it becomes to understand its roots and actual consequences in real life. Don't forget to share your experience!
I interpret it in the context of history, so that people can better understand the world's most serious nuclear accidents. I also utilized the latest archival materials and recently released government documents to interview eyewitnesses such as Svetlana Alexeyevich and Yuri Shcherbak, as well as writers on related topics, thus being able to describe the nuclear disaster and its impact on politics, society, and culture from a longer time dimension. Don't forget to share your experience!
From the damaged control room of the No. 4 nuclear reactor to abandoned villages within the restricted area, to political figures in Kiev, Moscow, and Washington, the book presents a diverse range of viewpoints. Have you tried this before? Share your story!Considering the Chernobyl incident in the context of international history, we may draw globally significant conclusions.
As a historical event, the Chernobyl disaster was indeed a technological disaster that not only dealt a heavy blow to the Soviet nuclear industry, but also affected the entire Soviet system. Have you tried this before? Share your story!This accident marked the beginning of the end of the Soviet Union: in the following five years, the world superpower was divided, not only due to ideological issues, but also caused by the poor functioning of the Soviet Union's own management and economic systems. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
The Chernobyl nuclear power plant explosion not only challenged, but also overturned the old order of the Soviet UnionThe policy of openness gives the media and citizens the right to comment on current affairs and criticize the authorities, and this policy originated in the post Chernobyl era. What do you think about this?As more and more people demand the government to disclose information, the original culture of confidentiality is gradually fading away. The Chernobyl disaster led the government to recognize that ecological issues could be a legitimate reason for Soviet citizens to establish their own organizations, breaking the monopoly of the Soviet Communist Party on Soviet political activities What do you think about this?The first batch of Soviet mass organizations and political parties emerged in the ecological movement and swept through heavily polluted industrial centers in the Soviet Union. What do you think about this?
Radiation affects everyone, from political party leaders to ordinary citizens. The Chernobyl accident has made people of all ethnicities and industries increasingly dissatisfied with Moscow and its policies. What do you think about this?
Ukraine, as the homeland of abandoned nuclear reactors, the political impact of this incident on I've found that it's more profound than anywhere else. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
The two major opponents in Ukrainian politics, the ruling communist party and the emerging opposition, have found consensus in opposing Moscow, especially Soviet leader Gorbachev. What do you think about this?
In December 1991, when Ukrainians voted for national independence, they had already thrown the vast Soviet Union into history.
Just a few weeks after the Ukrainian elections, the Soviet Union officially disintegrated.
However, I've found that it's incorrect to attribute the rise of political openness reforms in the Soviet Union and national movements in Ukraine and other member republics solely to the Chernobyl accident, but the impact of this accident on the aforementioned events cannot be overstated. Have you tried this before? Share your story!
Blaming the Chernobyl nuclear accident on the malfunctioning Soviet system and the design flaws of such nuclear reactors is a simple matter, which implies that these problems are all in the past. However, such confidence may be misplaced. What do you think about this?The cause of the core meltdown at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is still evident to this day.
Authoritative rulers hope to enhance national strength, consolidate their own position, accelerate economic development, and overcome energy and population crises, but they only make verbal promises regarding ecological issues. Compared to the situation in 1986, these situations have become more apparent now. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
If we don't learn from what has already happened, the Chernobyl style disaster is likely to happen again.
prelude
At 7am on April 28, 1986At a distanceStockholmIt's a two-hour driveFosmark Nuclear Power Plant29 year old chemistCliff RobinsonAfter enjoying breakfast, I went to brush my teeth. From the bathroom to the cloakroom, he had to pass through a radiation detector, and he had already walked thousands of times like this. This time the situation is different - the alarm sounded! Robinson felt that the alarm came without reason because he had never entered the control zone, where he might have been slightly affected by radiation. He passed by the radiation detector again and the alarm sounded again. The alarm didn't go off until his third attempt. The final explanation is that this annoying guy has already malfunctioned. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
Robinson's job at the nuclear power plant is to monitor radiation levels, and the radiation detector chose him as the object of notification to show how alert the system is. How ironic this is, he couldn't help but think to himself Let me know your thoughts in the comments!Fortunately, it can work well again. Robinson continued to do his duty, almost forgetting the unexpected alarm. But later in the morning, when he returned there, he found that a team of workers were also unable to pass the radiation detector in operation. Robinson did not have any testing equipment, but instead took a shoe from a person waiting in line next to the radiation detector and brought it to the laboratory for testing. What do you think about this?The test results made his spine tremble slightly. He recalled, "I witnessed a scene that remains unforgettable to this day. This shoe was severely contaminated, and I could see the spectrum rapidly rising What do you think about this?
Robinson's first reaction was that someone detonated a nuclear bomb because his shoes were contaminated with radioactive substances that are usually not found in nuclear power plants. He reported the above situation to his supervisor, and then the situation was submitted to What do you think about this?Swedish Radiation Safety AgencyThe government authorities believe that the problem may come from the nuclear power plant itself, soFosmark Nuclear Power Plant workers evacuated in a timely mannerThe nuclear power plant began conducting radioactive testing, but there was nothing. After a few hours, everything was clear that the nuclear power plant was not the cause of the pollution. The assumption of a nuclear bomb explosion has also been ruled out, as radioactive materials do not meet this scenario. Don't forget to share your experience!Due to the detection of strong radioactivity in other nuclear power plants, the radioactive material clearly comes from abroad.
The calculation value and wind direction both point towards the southeast direction of the world's nuclear power - the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!Did something terrible happen there? But the Soviets remained silent. The Swedish Radiation Safety Agency contacted Soviet officials, butThe latter did not acknowledgeAny event that could cause nuclear contamination occurred within the Soviet Union.However, the security departments of Scandinavian countries subsequently discovered radiation levels higher than normalIn Sweden, gamma radiation is 30-40% higher than normal; In Norway, this value is twice the normal value; In Finland, this value is six times the normal value. What do you think about this?
As byproducts of uranium during nuclear fission, two major radioactive gases - xenon and krypton - float across the Scandinavian Peninsula, What do you think about this?This region not only includes Finland, Sweden, Norway, but also Denmark.The detection shows that the radioactive contamination source located at an unknown location is still continuously releasing hazardous substances.
Swedes have been calling three Soviet agencies responsible for nuclear energy management and operation, but they have all denied learning of any accidents or explosions. Don't forget to share your experience!
Former Swedish Minister of Environment Brigitte DahlClaiming that the refusal of countries causing the spread of radioactive materials to disclose key information to the international community violates international treaties. What do you think about this?
No response at all.
The Swedish diplomat found what was happening at the timeHans Blix, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sweden under the leadership of the International Atomic Energy Agency in ViennaHowever, the institution is also unaware of the truth.
People are not sure what to know. Although the radiation level is high, it has not yet posed a direct threat to human and plant life. But what if nuclear pollution continues or even worsens? What happened after the Iron Curtain on the Soviet border? Is this the beginning of a new world war, or an unprecedented nuclear accident? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
Either way, it will affect the whole world - in fact, the impact has already been caused, but the Soviets remain silent. Have you tried this before? Share your story!
Part One: The Bitterness of Absinthe
Chapter 1 Game of Power
This is an extraordinary day - whether in Moscow or throughout the Soviet Union, many people believe I've found that it's the dawn of a new era. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!February 25, 1986On this cold winter morning, the temperature had dropped to -18 ℃ the night before,Nearly 5000 people dressed in winter clothes arrived at Red Square, located in the center of Moscow, adorned with giant portraits of Lenin. They included senior officials of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and government, military officers, scientists, leaders of large state-owned enterprises, as well as laboring masses such as workers and collective farm farmers Have you tried this before? Share your story!They are party representatives who came to attend the conference, and their mission is to formulate a new line for the development of the country in the next five years. Since the founding of the party by a group of idealistic socialists in the late 19th century, it has been Don't forget to share your experience!The 27th National Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
As soon as the crowd arrived at the Kremlin, they immediately headed thereNational Assembly HallThis is a building made of glass and cement, decorated with white marble slabs. The Great Hall was built in 1961 and is located in the former 16th century Tsar's residence Don't forget to share your experience!Boris Godunov The location of the architectural complex. The then highest leader of the Soviet UnionKhrushchevI hope this building can be comparable to the Great Hall of the People, which was unveiled in Beijing in 1959. That Chinese Great Hall can accommodate tens of thousands of people. The Soviets placed half of their conference hall underground to increase the seating capacity from 4000 to 6000. Except for the terrace seats in private rooms, most of the seats in other conference halls were located underground. Until Don't forget to share your experience!The Party Congress held every five yearsWhen the conference was held, regardless of the rapidly growing number of Soviet Communist Party members, Soviet leaders decided to limit the number of delegates to no more than 5000, because filling the hall would make it less comfortable for attendees - the Soviet Union lacked venues that could accommodate more people. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
In October 1961, Khrushchev held a inauguration ceremony for the newly built National Assembly HallAt that time, the 22nd National Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was being held. The meeting decided to remove Stalin's body from Lenin's tomb and at the same time determined a new plan for building a communist society, the basic goals of which would be achieved in the early 1980s. In 1986, representatives attending the 27th National Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union were required to evaluate their achievements. Even at best, the data is bleak. With the growth of population, economic development is slowing down, and the risk of a comprehensive collapse is increasing day by day. Soviet economists predicted a national income growth rate of 10% in the 1950s, but by 1985, the growth rate had dropped to 4%. Don't forget to share your experience!The prediction by the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States is even worse, as they first set the growth rate at 2-3%, and then lowered it to around 1%. Don't forget to share your experience!
At that time,ChinaPeople have introduced market mechanisms,Opened the prelude to economic reformAnd the United States has an optimistic presidentReaganUnder the leadership of, there is strong momentum in both the economic field and the arms race. However, the leadership of the Soviet Union lost its direction. The Soviet people became increasingly disappointed and distressed by their own communist practices. Despite the crisis of communist faith in the Soviet Union, people seem to be What do you think about this?Mikhail Gorbachev——A young and charismatic Soviet leader found new hope in him.
Chapter 2: The Road to Chernobyl
Chapter 3: The Birth of Nuclear Power Plants
Part 2 Hell Refining Fire
Chapter 4: Friday Night
Chapter 5: The Dark Cloud of Nuclear Explosions
Chapter 6: Fierce Flames
Chapter 7: Confusion and Confusion
Part Three: Above the Volcano
Chapter 8: The Supreme Council
Chapter 9: The Long Road Ahead
Chapter 10 Conquering the Reactor
Part Four Hidden Worries

Chapter 11: Dead Silence

Chapter 12 Forbidden Areas

Chapter 13: Penetrating Underground

Chapter 14: The Tragedy of Radiation

Part 5: The Storm Rises Again

Chapter 15: Oral and Written Criticism

Chapter 16: Stone Coffin

Chapter 17: Crimes and Punishments

Part Six: Rebirth after Robbery

Chapter 18: The Obstacle of Literati

Chapter 19: Turbulent Reverse Current

Chapter 20: Independent Atoms

Chapter 21: Seeking Asylum

Conclusion