Nuclear Power Advantages

Nuclear power is gaining wide popularity among the masses as hazards like global warming and climate change are making life increasingly difficult on this planet. Nuclear energy is produced in a controlled environment by heating water in order to create steam which rotates the turbines. The fuel used to heat water is some radioactive element, mostly uranium, with high efficiency. Whether nuclear power is a boon or a bane has been a subject of debate since a long time. People in support of nuclear energy are armed with numerous nuclear power advantages in order to make a point, but people against it are not quite impressed.

Advantages of Nuclear Power

Like any other source of power, there are nuclear power pros and cons as well. We need to take both of them into consideration, before coming to a conclusion. Given below are some of the prominent nuclear power advantages, which makes it the best alternative source of energy.

Cleaner Source of Power
This is undoubtedly the biggest advantage of nuclear power. Owing to the fact that no fossil fuels are used to produce nuclear energy, it is considered to be one of the most environment friendly source of energy. Proponents of nuclear power believe that introducing this source will help in curbing greenhouse gas emissions, which are threatening the planet with hazards like global warming and climate change. The edge that nuclear power has over other cleaner sources such as wind energy or solar energy is its capacity to produce enormous amounts of power.

Efficient Power Generation
More than half a century down the lane, nuclear power has become one of the most efficient source of power. A large credit for this goes to introduction of high-end technology which has made nuclear power plants efficient as well as safe. The sophisticated nuclear power plants being built today are less vulnerable to breakdowns or accidents. The fuels used to generate nuclear power are quite efficient in themselves, with a single ton of uranium producing energy, equivalent to a million tons of coal.

Inexpensive Source of Power
Even though, the initial investment in building a nuclear power plant is quite high, the expenses incurred in course of power generation are very reasonable. The fuel used by nuclear plants is very efficient and hence very less amount of fuel is required. More importantly, uranium reserves on the planet are expected to last for another 100 years. And even after these sources of uranium are over, there are alternative sources in form of plutonium and thorium.

Other than these, nuclear power advantages also include energy generation in concentrated form and waste being generated in compact form which can be easily disposed deep in the ground. Transportation of nuclear power is also very convenient and less expensive.

Nuclear Power Advantages for the United States

United States as a nation in itself has several advantages of nuclear power. At present, US depends on imported oils and natural gases to generate power to a great extent. If nuclear energy is tapped, it won't have to spend a large part of national income on importing oil and gas. It will become economically strong, as volatile prices of oil won't affect the economy. Nuclear power already constitutes 19 percent of the total electricity generation in the United States. Little more efforts and US can become a trend setter in terms of substituting harmful sources of energy with clean nuclear power.

Nuclear Power Facts

Other than the various advantages and disadvantages of nuclear power there are some interesting nuclear power facts, which are bound to leave you fascinated.

• Other than uranium, plutonium and thorium, nuclear power can also be generated by fusion of hydrogen with helium.
• Henri Becquerel, a French physicist is accredited with the discovery of nuclear energy. A feat he achieved in 1896.
• The Obninsk Nuclear Power Plant in the USSR was the first nuclear plant to generate electricity, way back in June 1954.
• At present, 80 percent of electricity in France is generated by means of nuclear power.
• Russia is in process of building floating nuclear power plants, the first of which is scheduled to be completed by 2010.

These were just a few among the numerous nuclear power facts which are bound to leave you longing for more.

More and more countries are shifting their base to nuclear power, which in itself is the biggest proof of various nuclear power advantages having an edge over its disadvantages. Nuclear power disasters, like the Chernobyl tragedy and the Mile Island incident did slow down the progress of nuclear power, but it has come back as a strong contender in power generation. More importantly, lessons have been taken from past incidents to ensure that the gruesome history doesn't repeat itself.