Thorium, people ! Current nuclear reactors basically suck because they are the children of war ! They wanted to make a big scary bomb first. No surprise they c

Thorium, people ! Current nuclear reactors basically suck because they are the children of war ! They wanted to make a big scary bomb first. No surprise they chose the most dangerous element ! It's the same thing as why space flight is so expensive. Each communications satellite has to be the shape of a hydrogen bomb. Thorium reactors are still in research phase. However, take a look at these quick bits from Wikipedia: - Rubbia states that a tonne of thorium can produce as much energy as 200 tonnes of uranium, or 3,500,000 tonnes of coal. - just 8 tablespoons of thorium could provide the energy used by an American during his or her lifetime. - there is no possibility of a meltdown - it does not produce weapons-grade by-products, and will burn up existing high-level waste as well as nuclear weapon stockpiles - Weapons-grade fissionable material (233U) is harder to retrieve safely and clandestinely from a thorium reactor - Thorium produces 10 to 10,000 times less long-lived radioactive waste - Thorium comes out of the ground as a 100% pure, usable isotope, which does not require enrichment, whereas natural uranium contains only 0.7% fissionable U-235 - Thorium cannot sustain a nuclear chain reaction without priming, so fission stops by default. - However, unlike uranium-based breeder reactors, thorium requires a start-up by neutrons from a uranium reactor. But experts note that "the second thorium reactor may activate a third thorium reactor - Thorium is found in small amounts in most rocks and soils, where it is about four times more abundant than uranium, and is about as common as lead - Thorium-containing minerals occur on all continents. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorium#Thorium_as_a_nuclear_fuel http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorium#Thorium_as_a_nuclear_fu...