Got the Power

Cari and I went over to the power plant last week. It's only about a thirty minute drive away. The plant has a learning center building they call "World of Energy". We have always been interested about visiting here. We are hoping it will answer some of the questions we have. Things like, "Why does that fish have three eyes?" or "Is our neighbor that works there glowing?"

It really felt special to be pulling into the Oconee Nuclear Plant complex. I had never been this close to a nuclear reaction. During the tour, Duke Power makes a point to continuously tell you how safe everything is. Near the end of the tour they show you how much natural radiation is around you. I get more radiation by standing in a group of people than if I would go and lean up against the reactor building. That's right, all of you are just oozing with radiation. So if the facility is so safe, why do the workers have to dispose of mops, gloves, and other items in a special garbage can to be sealed away as nuclear waste?

This plant doesn't have one of the large, open ended cooling towers like you see in the Simpsons. After the steam is used to turn a turbine, it goes through a condenser changing the steam back to liquid. That hot water is pumped back into the lake where the large surface area helps cool the water quickly. After the tour, Cari and I went outside to get another look at the buildings. There was a picnic area on the shore of the lake there. We ran down and stuck our hands in the water. On this very cold day, that water was really warm. Warm enough to swim in.

Here's a picture taken inside the World of Energy building. I've added some text to explain some of the buildings.

Telling people at work that we visited resulted in an interesting discussion about how many people from that town have deformed hands. That's what they tell me. As we were talking I pictured that moment I stuck my hand in that warm lake. I'll keep you posted if anything happens.