Higgsino physics published a straightforward (if not exactly simple) animation showing what went wrong at Chernobyl. It's like a physics equivalent to those "every day from your favorite war" animations showing the front lines advance and retreat across continents. Except this war happened in a big metal bucket in Pripyat. Turn on closed captions, but not until you have absorbed the legend at the bottom.
Chernobyl simulation. What vent wrong shown here, I will recreate the same events as in the control room and show you how the reactor responded. It's the physics Simulation from my video "Chernobyl accident visualized" Which explains absolutely everything. All the different elements that appears on the screen here as well. You can enable closed captions for more details on the different events.
You get a good impression of why confusion reigned (and was terrifyingly depicted in the recent TV miniseries) when the reactor started doing things that weren't in the manual.
I also like that the only sounds are the little pops and cracks of an imaginary Geiger counter in there with the gammas. There was an era where you could run a whole art collective on that sort of anxiety exponent. Here's the same video with a more detailed explanatory voiceover.
Chernobyl Accident – the Physics Clearly Explained: a simulation and visualization of the Chernobyl disaster, breaking down the physics behind the accident. It explains nuclear fission, focusing on Uranium-235 and how reactors maintain a controlled chain reaction using control rods and moderators like graphite. The RBMK reactor's dangerous positive void coefficient is highlighted, showing how overheating increases reactivity.
Previously:
• Chernobyl pups find forever homes
• Climate change is spreading radiation from Chernobyl over 2,000 miles away
• Chernobyl fungus could block cosmic radiation in Martian colonies
