It was time to ease back into some sightseeing after yesterday's break. We went to a very interesting site I had never heard about before called EBR-I (for Experimental Breeder Reactor - 1) in Arco, ID. I guess it was pretty secret during the cold war. It was the world's first atomic power plant and was built in the Idaho desert about 20 miles from Arco. It demonstrated that it could not only generate power, but it could create more fuel than it used! EBR-2 went on to demonstrate a design that was inherently safe - it could not have a "melt-down." It is difficult to remain silent about the travesty perpetrated on the American public when you see the meddling the government imposed on nuclear power. OK, maybe that was enough venting for this blog - I think I will save the rest of that rant for another forum.
EBR-I and Big Butte
Our tour guide, Corinne, had David's full attention!
There were a lot of learning opportunities along the way. I suppose when kids tour on school trips they have to spend time reading the boards and answering questions - fortunately, being retired we didn't have to take any tests.
In the control room, there was a button with an interesting story. It was labeled "SCRAM." It was an acronym for Safety Critical Rod Axe Man. You can see the story below but Corinne seemed skeptical about it being accurate.
It seems wrong to have a window in the reactor but this is actually 39 panes of leaded glass with mineral oil filling the space between panes. I hope they did a good job of de-contaminating the room!
Back in Arco, I was told there was a submarine sail. I thought I knew what that was, so I was not sure how I could have missed it twice already. This time I was paying attention and found it right next to the main road. Pretty cool. I know it seems odd to have a submarine in the desert, but the U.S. Navy had some pretty close ties with the area while they developed their nuclear capabilities.
I think they are serious about their reserved parking!
We had to walk across the road from our RV park to get these shots of a beautiful sunset, but I think it was worth the effort!
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