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It isn't like you have to blow up the reactor itself to disable a foreign nuclear plant. I see no reason why anybody would ever target a reactor core. There is

It isn't like you have to blow up the reactor itself to disable a foreign nuclear plant. I see no reason why anybody would ever target a reactor core. There is a HUGE amount of electrical substation infrastructure outside of these plants which would take like 1/1000 the effort to damage or blow up as the reactor core itself and would shut the whole thing down. The only reason you would target a reactor core itself is to spread nuclear debri on purpose, which is still probably more effort than it would take to just make a dirty bomb and far less effective than a dirty bomb. Also you destroy all value in taking that territory, piss off every other country in the world likely prompting them to join the war against you, and likely spread the poison back into your own territory.

nicoburns 5y ago
Would destroying the support infrastructure for these plants be any safer? My understanding is that almost all (if not all) nuclear power stations presently in operation need active cooling even after the reactor is shutdown. If that cooling infrastructure is disrupted then that could be just as disastrous as if the reactor core itself was targeted.
- lm28469 5y ago
  Hm yeah, just cut the cables carrying the electricity out
  - Doxin 5y ago
    Power cables aren't unidirectional. The cables carrying power in are the same as the cables carrying power out.
TheOtherHobbes 5y ago
Tac nuke ground burst + reactor core = extremely bad news. And of course you can wait until the wind is blowing in the right direction. Yes, there would be consequences. But there are also consequences for going on a random shooter spree, and they don't stop random shooters.
anarazel 5y ago
Spent fuel tank cooling not working isn't fun either. That needs power too.
heartofadog 5y ago
I don't see much of any "reason" behind what this invading army has been doing for the past 3.5 weeks, actually. Or if it's even right to call them an army. Anyway I don't think the concern is that they would target or otherwise intentionally sabotage the reactors -- but that nonetheless they would allow something bad (potentially seriously bad) to happen by pure neglect. Kind of like the way they managed to blow up Reactor 4 in the first place back in 1986.
tablespoon 5y ago
> It isn't like you have to blow up the reactor itself to disable a foreign nuclear plant. I see no reason why anybody would ever target a reactor core. There is a HUGE amount of electrical substation infrastructure outside of these plants which would take like 1/1000 the effort to damage or blow up as the reactor core itself and would shut the whole thing down. If you attack that infrastructure, the core will melt down without suffering a direct attack. IIRC, that's what happened at Fukushima: a tsunami took out the backup generators, which shut down the core cooling system, which then led to the core overheating and melting down.

nicoburns 5y ago

Would destroying the support infrastructure for these plants be any safer? My understanding is that almost all (if not all) nuclear power stations presently in operation need active cooling even after the reactor is shutdown. If that cooling infrastructure is disrupted then that could be just as disastrous as if the reactor core itself was targeted.

lm28469 5y ago
Hm yeah, just cut the cables carrying the electricity out
- Doxin 5y ago
  Power cables aren't unidirectional. The cables carrying power in are the same as the cables carrying power out.

TheOtherHobbes 5y ago

Tac nuke ground burst + reactor core = extremely bad news. And of course you can wait until the wind is blowing in the right direction. Yes, there would be consequences. But there are also consequences for going on a random shooter spree, and they don't stop random shooters.

anarazel 5y ago

Spent fuel tank cooling not working isn't fun either. That needs power too.

heartofadog 5y ago

I don't see much of any "reason" behind what this invading army has been doing for the past 3.5 weeks, actually. Or if it's even right to call them an army. Anyway I don't think the concern is that they would target or otherwise intentionally sabotage the reactors -- but that nonetheless they would allow something bad (potentially seriously bad) to happen by pure neglect. Kind of like the way they managed to blow up Reactor 4 in the first place back in 1986.

tablespoon 5y ago

> It isn't like you have to blow up the reactor itself to disable a foreign nuclear plant. I see no reason why anybody would ever target a reactor core. There is a HUGE amount of electrical substation infrastructure outside of these plants which would take like 1/1000 the effort to damage or blow up as the reactor core itself and would shut the whole thing down. If you attack that infrastructure, the core will melt down without suffering a direct attack. IIRC, that's what happened at Fukushima: a tsunami took out the backup generators, which shut down the core cooling system, which then led to the core overheating and melting down.