Researchers Describe How Natural Nuclear Reactor Worked In Gabon (Two Billion Years Ago)

Space Daily ^ | 11-01-2004

[blam]

I was looking for answers and I found this, lol.

[Candor7]

Now if we could only find a naturally ocurring nuclear fusion reactor on the face of the earth! Where to start looking?

[GSlob]

So for 150 million years that Gabon Chernobyl was geysering the waste out, right?

[blam]

"Where to start looking?"

Maybe in the middle of the earth?

[RebelTex]

"I was looking for answers and I found this, lol."

I'm not sure I want to know the question, LOL.  :-D

[kimosabe31]

I think these guys are full of s#!t...whadda you think blam?

[Nateman]

There is an isotope of Xenon (Xenon 135) that is a HUGE neutron absorber, so much so that it can shut down reactors on its own. It is made naturally as a fission by product or the beta decay of another fission by produce (Iodine 135.) Since Xe 135 has a half life of 9.5 hours it will go away on its own allowing the reaction to happen again. That might have been cause of natural shutdowns too.

[blam]

"I'm not sure I want to know the question, LOL. :-D"

The original question: In 1940-41 the Germans captured all the heavy water in the world from the Norwegians and it was used in the German atom bomb program.

What were the Norwegians doing with the heavy water at that time?

[BP2]

"Nature is much smarter than we are. Nature is the first genius. We have all kinds of problems with modern-day nuclear reactors. This reactor is so independent, with no electronics, no models.

Huh, wha… More anthropomorphizing from a college professor!

I’m sure Mother Nature has had a few of these so-called reactors go “China Syndrome” and blow up some fault line or volcanic region in the history of the Earth, too. We just haven’t found them yet.

Let me guess: The 1883 Krakatoa explosion was Mother Nature just running a series of experiments on Shock Wave Theory and Global Cooling.

Jeez.

[Nateman]

Nuclear reactions create a large neutron flux. That causes quite a few changes in the surrounding material that would never have happened otherwise. Since radioactive decay is a very reliable natural clock it is also easy to figure out just when all of this happened. I read about this natural reactor many years ago and the neatest thing about it is that the radioactive by products never moved more than a fraction of an inch from where they were produced, showing that it was a very environmentally friendly reactor too.

[burzum]

Maybe in the middle of the earth?

Nope. But as sort of an ironic twist, the core of the earth is composed of the most stable element produced in nuclear fusion reactions: iron. The center of the earth due to its composition would be the least likely place to find a nuclear fusion reactor. Any nuclear reaction with a stable isotope of iron is endothermic (vice exothermic which produces heat).

[RebelTex]

"What were the Norwegians doing with the heavy water at that time?"

OK - so now we know the question, don't keep us in suspense - what's the answer?

(man, am I in trouble now.  I promised myself I'd finish my taxes tonight, buy just one peek at FR won't hurt anything, right?  I mean, I can quit anytime I want, right?  It's not like it's gonna disappear, right?   But, then I just had to ask - & I STILL haven't got my taxes done - got to get that answer 1st - ANYTHING to put off  doing that stupid 1040, LOL)

Will any of you come visit me when the IRS or the guys in the white coats come take me away?

 

[Strategerist]

The Norwegians were selling it to scientists all over the world for experiments; it was used as neutron source, in medical experiments, etc.

They weren't trying to build a bomb or anything.

[blam]

See post #14, that's the first answer I've gotten.

[WSGilcrest]

1. Enter your taxable income from Form 1040, line 43 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.
2. Enter your qualified dividends from Form 1040, line 9b . . . . . 2.
3. Enter the amount from Form 4952, line 4g 3.
4. Enter the amount from Form 4952, line 4e* 4.
5. Subtract line 4 from line 3. If zero or less, enter -0- . . . . . . . . 5.
6. Subtract line 5 from line 2. If zero or less, enter -0- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.
7. Enter the smaller of line 15 or line 16 of Schedule D . . . . . . . 7.
8. Enter the smaller of line 3 or line 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.
9. Subtract line 8 from line 7. If zero or less, enter -0- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.
10. Add lines 6 and 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.
11. Add lines 18 and 19 of Schedule D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.
12. Enter the smaller of line 9 or line 11 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.
13. Subtract line 12 from line 10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.
14. Subtract line 13 from line 1. If zero or less, enter -0- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14.
15. Enter the smaller of:
•• T$h2e9 ,a7m00o uifn ts ionng llein oer 1m oarrried filing separately; }
. . . . . . . . 15.
$59,400 if married filing jointly or qualifying widow(er); or
$39,800 if head of household
16. Enter the smaller of line 14 or line 15 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.
17. Subtract line 10 from line 1. If zero or less, enter -0- . . . . . . . 17.
18. Enter the larger of line 16 or line 17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
18.
If lines 15 and 16 are the same, skip lines 19 and 20 and go to line 21. Otherwise, go to line 19.
19. Subtract line 16 from line 15 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
19.
20. Multiply line 19 by 5% (.05) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20.
If lines 1 and 15 are the same, skip lines 21 through 33 and go to line 34. Otherwise, go to line 21.
21. Enter the smaller of line 1 or line 13 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21.
22. Enter the amount from line 19 (if line 19 is blank, enter -0-) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22.
23. Subtract line 22 from line 21. If zero or less, enter -0- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
23.
24. Multiply line 23 by 15% (.15) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24.
If Schedule D, line 19, is zero or blank, skip lines 25 through 30 and go to line 31. Otherwise, go to line 25.
25. Enter the smaller of line 9 above or Schedule D, line 19 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25.
26. Add lines 10 and 18 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26.
27. Enter the amount from line 1 above . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.
28. Subtract line 27 from line 26. If zero or less, enter -0- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28.
29. Subtract line 28 from line 25. If zero or less, enter -0- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
29.
30. Multiply line 29 by 25% (.25) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30.
If Schedule D, line 18, is zero or blank, skip lines 31 through 33 and go to line 34. Otherwise, go to line 31.
31. Add lines 18, 19, 23, and 29 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31.
32. Subtract line 31 from line 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32.
33. Multiply line 32 by 28% (.28) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33.
34. Figure the tax on the amount on line 18. Use the Tax Table or Tax Computation Worksheet, whichever applies . . . . . . . . . . 34.
35. Add lines 20, 24, 30, 33, and 34 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35.
36. Figure the tax on the amount on line 1. Use the Tax Table or Tax Computation Worksheet, whichever applies . . . . . . . . . . . 36.
37. Tax on all taxable income (including capital gains and qualified dividends). Enter the smaller of line 35 or line 36. Also
include this amount on Form 1040, line 44 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37.
*If applicable, enter instead the smaller amount you entered on the dotted line next to line 4e of Form 4952.

[Heatseeker]

What were the Norwegians doing with the heavy water at that time?

It probably involved lutefisk.

[Nathan Zachary]

It's amazing that these people get paid. Even worse, some people believe this drivel.

[Heatseeker]

But what I really want to know is, what were those clever little Paleoproterozoic stromatolites doing with 100 kilowatts of power?

[Nathan Zachary]

""However, because 235 U decays much faster than 238 U, in the past, 235 U was more abundant. For example, two billion years ago 235 U was five times higher, about three percent, approximately the concentration of enriched uranium used in modern commercial reactors."

I guess that really screws the carbon dating model too....