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Louis Slotin, a Canadian physicist who stemmed a nuclear lab explosion, born this day in 1910. Slotin was part of the Manhattan Project in World War II, and was involved in the “Paharito” accident at Los Alamos labs that involved a sudden criticality and release of radiation. Slotin died but his quick thinking probably saved the lives of his co-workers.

Brown’s Ferry nuclear fire   A worker holding a candle sets fire to the control system at the Brown’s Ferry Nuclear Power Plant in Alabama on this day in 1975. Tennessee Valley Authority workers heroically battled the fire and jury-rigged controls to successfully shut down the reactor in order to avert a meltdown.  The accident was only one of many at the height of the global nuclear power construction program. These led to a re-evaluation of safety and cost issues and a new emphasis on renewable energy systems.

Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster

The world’s worst nuclear power accident (thus far) took place on March 11, 2011 in the aftermath of an earthquake and tsunami on the central east coast of Japan. Three reactors melted down and exploded, scattering deadly radioactive particles. Years later, utility and government officials still have no way to contain the increasingly dangerous nuclear cores that may burn through the containment structures.

Castle Bravo Bikini hydrogen bomb test conducted in the Pacific Ocean on this day in 1954.

French nuke France explodes first nuclear weapon on this day in 1960, becoming the fourth country to possess nuclear weapons after the US, Russia, and Britain.

Search for radium facilities begins in Denver on this day in 1979. The US Dept. of Energy begins an aerial search for radioactive dump sites and 15 processing facilities after an EPA employee had uncovered old Bureau of Mines records concerning the Coloradio radium industry of the 1920 – 1930s time period. The factories produced glow-in-the-dark watches and instruments. Irresponsible uses of radium included a medical cure-all by quack physicians. Also, the treatment of radium workers was well known for its brutality. See The Radium Girls.

US Air Force loses another nuke
Following a mid-air collision between a B-47 bomber and a fighter plane, an Mk-15 nuclear weapon is lost off the coast of Georgia on this day in 1958. The incident is one of dozens of close calls and near-disasters.

Nuclear weapons accident On this day in 1961, a B-52 Stratofortress carrying two Mark 39 nuclear bombs broke up in mid-air, dropping its nuclear payload in Goldboro, NC. The bombs did not go off, but they almost did. Five of the six arming mechanisms on one of the bombs were activated, causing it to execute many of the steps needed to arm itself, such as charging the firing capacitors and, critically, deployment of a 100-foot-diameter (30 m) retard parachute. The parachute allowed that bomb to hit the ground with little damage

Missing A-Bomb A fiery crash at Thule Air Base this day in 1968 results in a missing nuclear weapon, a broken arrow incident.

First nuclear submarine The USS Nautilus, the first nuclear submarine, is launched this day in 1954 in Groton, Connecticut.