This was such an excellent video. The real footage of the 2001 incident was extremely compelling and seeing the actual Strontium-90 heat source being handled very quickly by those men and seeing the snow boil and produce steam from its heat is terrifying. You can hear the beeps of the geiger counters from the videographer standing a good distance away from the action, so you can imagine how much radiation was being put off up close where the disposal team was rushing to contain it.

@TheLtVoss

Жыл бұрын

Yeha the guy with the tongs got a good dose of angry air just because of his closer proximity than the other guys about 1m instead of the aimed 2m and oh man that 0isn't good for the man's health

@edifyguy

Жыл бұрын

@@TheLtVoss I thought about that too. However, he also was near it for a much shorter time. Ultimately this wasn't good for any of them, but they did what they had to do. Good for them.

@TheBanana93

Жыл бұрын

@@TheLtVoss It wasn't good for any of them but at the end of the day they knew that and had the balls to do it!

@llaeeZ

Жыл бұрын

@@TheLtVoss They should have used a doubled jointed tongs so it could be longer.

@rodrigoroaduterte9415

Жыл бұрын

First of, we all live in the radiation storm of the Sun, so our organisms are perfect in regeneration from small amounts of radiation. Next, normal radiation counters with audio feedback constantly beep while detecting natural radiation which is EVERYWHERE.

Watching that team secure the loose source was amazing. I hope those men got the recognition they deserved.

@mikecummings6593

Жыл бұрын

Two loaves of bread and a Soviet toothbrush

@QuasiMonkey

Жыл бұрын

@@mikecummings6593 And an extra bottle of vodka.

@richardhighsmith

Жыл бұрын

@@QuasiMonkey No way, they are Georgian. I am sure there was a night of toasts, jokes and stories with good food and Georgian wine for all involved.

@willoughby1888

Жыл бұрын

@@richardhighsmith "Live well, Laugh often, Love much"... all free things, all that can be shared, or forgotten about.

@michac3796

Жыл бұрын

They don't, and to prove my point, their names remain unspoken, if they are even known and not secret. Even the producer of this video mentioned their names.

The idea of gas lanterns makes a lot of sense if you consider the climate of the region, we might look at it as a waste of resources in modern standards, but to them it was light,and through the inefficiencies of electrical conversion, heat; so to them (back in the day) this was a triple win.

@zakn3954

Жыл бұрын

I must make one! Seems like a good electronics project, would come in handy of the power went out. Heat light and a phone charger that can run off animal fats or alcohol if need be.

@twistedyogert

Жыл бұрын

Just bolt the thermocouple to the top of a Coleman lantern and you're golden.

@baronvonlimbourgh1716

Жыл бұрын

If you actually use the heat it isn't inefficient. it becomes inefficient if the heat is a byproduct that you get rid of without using it.

@marquisdemoo1792

Жыл бұрын

@@zakn3954 They already exist: kzread.info/dash/bejne/e4mekpVto7SolKQ.html It is also the principle used by those fans you put on top of wood stoves to blow the heat into the room.

@jonathantan2469

Жыл бұрын

@@zakn3954 It would make a good device for winter camping in areas that are heavily shaded by trees, mountains, etc... making small solar panels not feasible. The thermocouple device can also be used with campfires or wood stoves to recharge mobile devices, GPS units, and batteries.

I have a person deep fascination with what I think of as "remote infrastructure" like Dams, Lighthouses, Abandoned places ,etc. This is simply terrifying and amazing.

@R3volutionblu3s

Жыл бұрын

I've often wished that I could afford to visit some of the more remote DEW line radar sites. I have seen photos and video from others who have explored them and it's as if they have been untouched since they were decommissioned, with vehicles, food, magazines, etc all still in place.

@truthseeker2321

Жыл бұрын

Actually, this is the first that I've ever heard of nuclear lighthouses.

@mromatic17

11 ай бұрын

me too if you are stuck in the middle of nowhere and you come up on something like a weather station or lighthouse its amazing cuz its the closest thing to human technology manipulating our enviroment and its what seperates us from the other apes!

@pyrocrabb12

11 ай бұрын

I would like to meet your person.

@SkinnyVampiress

10 ай бұрын

Yeah I have a dream to live in an old lighthouse, do my things and enjoy solitude :)

The story of the 3 mountaineers always makes me sad... they had no clue what it was, they had no way to know, and they just wanted to keep warm on a horribly frigid winter night while doing their work... one died horrifically, and the other two suffered terribly for months, and probably even years, later... for trying to stay warm...

@jimc3708

Жыл бұрын

There was a terrifying incident in which a scapper tore apart a x-ray, machine and took the cessium home, in which his daughter, sprinkled it all over because it glowed, and made her feel pretty, I read that and it is heart breaking en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goi%C3%A2nia_accident

@rottweilertrainingUK

Жыл бұрын

​@@jimc3708I agree that was incredibly sad for the little girl (and everyone else that died or were injured)

@mr.boobania

Жыл бұрын

The Goiânia accident. Terrifying.

@DonCarlione973

Жыл бұрын

What a horribly slow way to go man 😞

@StevenGuderian14

Жыл бұрын

​@DonCarlione973 absolutely!!! Just immense pain. Not sure how the pain from radiation is. I could imagine it's absolutely horrible.

This is the most soviet thing I've seen.

@ZGryphon

Жыл бұрын

Stories like this one always make me think of the British admiral snarling at the Russian general in the pre-credits scene of... which Bond movie was it? _Tomorrow Never Dies,_ I think. "Can't you people keep anything locked up?!"

@Nickearl1

Жыл бұрын

Our generators lol

@792slayer

Жыл бұрын

@@ZGryphon of course, comrade! In gulag!

@MannoMax

Жыл бұрын

Oh yeah, actually very classically soviet. A state of the art technology abandoned because of the dissolution of the union

@piercedjeebus

Жыл бұрын

It needs a bear riding a unicycle wearing a party hat drinking a bottle of vodka

I am Georgian and heard this story multiple times, but this is the most accurate description so far.

Seeing the snow boiling off of that cylinder during the Lia recovery was God damned scary.

Plutonium is simply amazing. Just imagine how incredibly crazy this is: you have a little clump of metal just sitting there, and it gives off huge amounts of immediately usable energy, for a lifetime , without any maintenance or energy input. The stuff that the wildest dreams are made of! 🤩

@MarvinHartmann452

Жыл бұрын

It can do miracles if used properly.

@merzto

Жыл бұрын

nothing works witout maintenace

@HL3AlcAida

Жыл бұрын

Great power comes with a grande price...

@vondahe

11 ай бұрын

If it only gave off energy, it would be amazing.

@cdgonepotatoes4219

11 ай бұрын

​@@MarvinHartmann452like give you a third thumb

Those are some really unselfish, brave people who cleaned up the remains of that last generator. They're heroes. I hope it doesn't come back to haunt them.

@leexgx

Жыл бұрын

Basically limiting exposure to them for no more then 30 to 60 seconds

@twistedyogert

Жыл бұрын

​@@leexgx Yep, the effects of radiation are cumulative. Time is really your only protection.

@dawnmoriarty9347

Жыл бұрын

They are true heroes. A minor slip in the snow could have had unimaginable consequences for them as individuals

@g1g3l

Жыл бұрын

P.S. Selfless is the opposite of selfish

@XMarkxyz

Жыл бұрын

They had personal counters and if I remember correctly throught they perfect execution and swift action they managed to keep below the level of rafiation that a ct scan would give you

Dear goodness, I've read about the Lia incident before, but I've never seen pictures of the poor guys, nor footage of the recovery operation. This was fascinating, thank you!

@ruslankammisaroff4485

8 ай бұрын

Video in english and photo in Lia hospital kzread.info/dash/bejne/l2d7u8lwicK9Z9Y.htmlsi=Au0zfsgw4cCTfYNF

Man alive, that training and recovery footage brings a whole new meaning to the old saying, "I wouldn't touch that with a 10-foot pole."

The Georgian RTG recover operation is like a Nuclear Olympic game, you can only do it once and everybody get a gold metal.

@shinmalpure2397

11 ай бұрын

Kind of like playing a game with the devil.

@swingtag1041

11 ай бұрын

If I was a participant I would want a lead metal in advance

@irvan36mm

11 ай бұрын

The whole scene looked like a Monty Python episode

@_jin4323

11 ай бұрын

@@irvan36mm very few life and death things go as planned. Even for me in much lower stakes of EMS where I'm not contemplating taking dangerous doses of radiation, having to do things quickly and making split second decisions makes it look very dumb from an outside perspective. What matters is they got their job done and nobody got acute radiation poisoning.

@infestus5657

10 ай бұрын

And it is even more healthy than beeing an athelete.

My first reaction was “what a great idea” , the recovery film was fascinating as well, the bravery and dedication of the civil defence volunteers deserves far greater recognition as well.

@leonboersma2375

Жыл бұрын

I think the idea is great! When controlled correctly

@xxskizzumxx

Жыл бұрын

@@iridium8341 tgeyre in the works and being built through government cooperation. Google "Radiant portable nuclear reactor". I can see a million reason why this will never take off and it's not because of safety concerns, but hopefully it'll be viable for remote locations.

Oh wow Andy, the amount of detail you've put it in this video is practically equivalent to historians work. Great work and props to you!

I did my dissertation on RTG's in USSR, it is a VERY unknown story, thanks for doing it justice.

@markmilan8365

Жыл бұрын

👌

@damianorbert

Жыл бұрын

Did you ever hear about Apollo mission on moon? Apollo 13 had RTG it's still on the button of see.

@duckqueak

Жыл бұрын

​@@damianorbert seems irresponsible but at least the water stops the radiation from traveling super far.

@deineroehre

Жыл бұрын

@@duckqueak To be fair, at this place down there no one tampers with it, so it is basically safer than any RTG on land...

I've read about RTGs and the Lia incident before but had no idea there was footage of the recovery operation. That was fascinating. Thanks for putting this video together, you did a great job

That Georgia recovery was amazing!

@boxlid214

Жыл бұрын

Their training paid off, less exposure than a CT scan during the recovery

@jhonbus

Жыл бұрын

It's just missing Richard O'Brien playing a harmonica in the background!

@mikemurphy5898

Жыл бұрын

The term "wild" comes to mind. Kudos to the men for their clearly effective training/ practice and execution!

@rogerwilco2

Жыл бұрын

Indeed.

Nevertheless, those RTGs seem a fine source of independent, maintenance free power. If only they hadn't completely neglected safety checks. Had they only reduced their checks instead of abandoning them they might have been operable and safe for much longer than they were, much like everything the Soviet Union left behind. Lots of wasted potential in resources and abandoned infrastructure.

There is a Russian movie "Как я провёл этим летом"(2010) with an episode, when a man poisoned fish by RTG and fed it to a meteo station worker. Also according to wikipedia there is a list of lncidents with RTG'S, such as "accidentally dropped in the ocean from helicopter" and "found on scrapyard".

17:06 that is amazing that after all those decades and thousands of visitors, the generators never had an incident and nobody got sick or died. I imagine the radiation warnings had a big role in that, nobody wants to suffer that way for sure. Never seen the full footage of the Georgian recovery operation. Man that is some good stuff thank you for a great video.

@robinwells8879

Жыл бұрын

We in the west have been consistently sniffy about Russian technology through the years but these RTGs fulfilled a life saving need and were only a danger after the unexpected collapse and only then at the hands of the ignorant and criminally inclined. The west is as paranoid about radiation as the east is complacent. When the west collapses, I doubt that our reactors will fair any better. These RTG devices, left unmolested, represent little or no danger to anyone. A sheet of paper will stop Alpha radiation from plutonium which is more toxic than radiologically dangerous. Had they used plutonium however, we would be in a lot more trouble now and there would be none left to recover.

@paul06660

Жыл бұрын

@@robinwells8879 I agree with you on this. Especially what will happen when the west collapse. Its not a matter of if, but when. Not only do we have lots of nuclear stuff that will fall into disrepair, but we also have thousands of other things like dams which will fall into disrepair and threaten anyone in their floodplains.

@robertpatrick3350

Жыл бұрын

Given that they the Russian unit had significant design and installation flaws and were deployed in great numbers due to their poor economy that theory has significant flaws.

@Arthion

Жыл бұрын

Frankly the fact that relatively few (known at least) incidents have occured, seems mostly down to sheer luck and inaccessibility as they are as proven quite simple to dissasemble, dangerously so even. A better design that can't be taken apart with an average toolbox could be a good choice in such locations, provided they are actually monitored somewhat and not left to rust for decades.

@twistedyogert

Жыл бұрын

​@@Arthion I think that there was an idea that the Soviet Union would last longer than it actually did so there would be enough people out there to service them. The USSR was a superpower on par with the US in terms of their output.

I remember reading about this issue and the Georgia incident many years ago. The men that recovered the canister are extremely brave.

@noname-wo9yy

Жыл бұрын

Many bottles of strong alcohol was drunk before and after no doubt

@emitindustries8304

Жыл бұрын

​@@noname-wo9yy And just as deadly.

@rixille

Жыл бұрын

Brave but it looks like they were all careful not to linger around the source for too long due to their training and limits imposed. Hopefully they are all in good health to this day.

@57thorns

Жыл бұрын

@@rixille Exactly they had training and the vodka was definitely saved for later.

@Blatstein

Жыл бұрын

Well they certainly had more training and knowledge of the dangers in comparison to the “liquidators”

Excellent video. Thank you for putting this together. Over the years, I've probably watched 3 other KZread videos discussing the Lia incident. But, yours is the first time I had seen the video of the recovery efforts. It is quite haunting, and I can't imagine being one of the men standing that close to it, even for 45 seconds. They are very brave individuals.

@ruslankammisaroff4485

8 ай бұрын

kzread.info/dash/bejne/l2d7u8lwicK9Z9Y.htmlsi=Au0zfsgw4cCTfYNF

This is an astoundingly well put-together document. The explanations are the clearest and most accurately articulate that I have found on KZread.

What an incredibly well done video.

Go hiking in the US Find a large metal object in the woods Its probably some abandoned logging machinery Go hiking in Russia Find a large metal object in the woods Its a fucking nuclear reactor

@markus1351

Жыл бұрын

If i remember correctly there was actually an Orphan source incident in the US

@chaseman113

11 ай бұрын

Go Hiking in the US Northwest in the 50’s. Find clockwork metal thing covered in string & fabric. Drag it back to camp & it explodes.

RTGs don't inherently pose any risk, but if you're going to remove the radiation source/core then that's when things become a big problem like this incident. Too many people in the world immediately attribute nuclear energy as tantamount to danger and hazardous, when it's easily the most efficient and clean (using modern standards) energy source we have.

@celinematerzok6421

11 ай бұрын

Also the NASA for example, when they use RTGs, encase the radiation source in a suitable case to prevent to much radiation to escape... also they should be able (and are designed) to survive reentry and crashing on the surface without exposing the core. Its all a matter of thinking of what may go wrong and how much money you want to spend for safety.... I hate money.... it limits safety sometimes and because of safety regulations and the money lost on that, Fission reactors arent very cost effective and become dangerous while not properly checked and maintained for safety. Also Nuclear reactors have one of the least injury rates among power "generators"

@pogonator1

9 ай бұрын

😂🤣Fukushima was / is a state of the art nuclear power plant, we still have no advanced working technology. Molten Salt Reactors are still decades away from being an actually working nuclear power plants. Currently, it looks like nuclear fusion will be useable before MSRs. And nuclear energy isn't clean if you consider the hole process of from mining the resources to waste management.

@DiomedesStrosMkai

8 ай бұрын

@@pogonator1 Based on CDF estimates, modern Gen III+ reactor designs are anywhere from 100-1000x safer than the BWR used at Fukushima. Further, the design of the plant of Fukushima was intended for operation in the US midwest, where tornadoes are a major concern. Thus, redundant safety systems were placed below ground. This was inappropriate for the east coast of Japan, where tsunamis were a concern. As far as not being clean through the whole process, nuclear creates less waste than either solar or wind power. It requires less land in all three areas of mining, operation, and waste management. These are readily available facts found through 10 seconds of googling.

@richardmcgonigle1160

8 ай бұрын

Yep if the reaction is controlled..fine... proper shielding fine. Anything goes wrong with either .... its China syndrome.

@suprlite

8 ай бұрын

​​@@pogonator1wrong. Molten salt reactors existed already in the 60's. It's tried and tested technology. But the powers that be didnt want them, as they couldnt be used to make atom bombs. Fusion on the other hand is pure sci-fi as of now.

I had Muscovite neighbors for a decade. A charming, humorous family. Your cool documentary reminded me of one of my favorite Russian jokes. A Russian diplomat is on a plane to the USA. The bloke next to him asks "What brings you to our fine country?" The Russian replies " Our politburo has sent me to study Western Propaganda". "What propaganda?" Exclaims his co-passenger "Exactly.." Replies the Russian.

This gives a lot of context and I feel a lot more compassion for the woodsmen victims. I remember reading about this incident when I was younger, thinking they were stupid and careless, when in reality it was the careless construction and placement of these RTGs that was stupid.

@edifyguy

Жыл бұрын

I would have known to be suspicious of a nuclear device and not camp next to it, but that's because I've studied nuclear energy extensively. Someone who hasn't......."That's cool. Free heat!"

@bartle6168

Жыл бұрын

Had the woodsmen been honest and left it alone, reported the find to the authorities and done so straight away no one would have been hurt or died. Dishonesty has a cost.

@infernaldaedra

Жыл бұрын

​@@bartle6168they might have just thought it was hot and probably had some idea but really how would they know. Maybe they thought it was something else. They might not have ever considered they would ever come into contact with anything radioactive.

@user-ib4wh2yq8d

Жыл бұрын

Глупо винить государство которое не существовало к тому времени как 30 лет . большинству из новых республик было плевать на все это некоторым до сих пор . в РФ например есть программа ликвидации этого радиоактивного мусора.

@bigb6769

Жыл бұрын

​@@bartle6168 It wasn't the woodsmen who were dishonest. The dishonest ones were the scrappers who stole metal off of the RTG, then ditched the radioactive part alongside the trail. The woodsmen didn't steal anything, they simply brought it to their camp for heat, not knowing the danger.

Thank you. I had no idea about these. I’m shocked they were all abandoned like that. At least educate the people “if you see this symbol on something, leave it alone and tell the authorities.” And yet, like that RTG in the rusted shed in the forest if I were a local I’d probably try to protect people myself if the authorities wouldn’t. If it were safe to do so, secure the shed even if it’s just wooden barricades carved with warnings and a contact number for information. “Yeah the shed has an old RTG in it. If you value your life, let it be.”

@57thorns

Жыл бұрын

This assumes there is an authority that will act rationally. Russia hasn't had one for 20 years now.

@jskratnyarlathotep8411

Жыл бұрын

they don't trust authorities there, as well as a signs. Because Russia is not what one could expect from a regular country. Most of its territories and people are treated only as occupied colonies, especially the poor ones (read: the rural ones). So the population treats the authorities correspondingly. No wonder many dream of RF breaking, just like USSR did.

@ekksoku

Жыл бұрын

@@57thorns some would argue for over 100 years

@mikecummings6593

Жыл бұрын

It's communist how would you be shocked

@xWood4000

Жыл бұрын

It would be nice to both have the radiation symbol and the bones and skukk symbol because that is more known to be danger. But that's ofc mostly used for chemical danger

One of the greatest documentary I have ever seen on youtube. You did quite a job to make is so informative, condensed and professional. Subscribed!

Amazing and informative video! Stories such as these don't get told very often and are still relevant to this day. Great subject.

Scary to see the cylinder actually BOILING the snow around it . Scarier still, was the lack of any safety PPE for the removal team.....

@q3st1on19

Жыл бұрын

They had all the PPE needed: boots, a thick coat and radiation monitors. The only dangers these people faced that could be mitigated with PPE were the cold temperatures and the risk of tripping in the snowy forest. Radiation safety can be summarised with the concepts of time, distance and shielding. Time: the less time you spend near a source, the less radiation you are exposed to. Distance: radiation intensity decreases with the inverse square law (much like light). The more distance you can put between you and the source, the less radiation you are exposed to. Shielding: many materials absorb radiation, if you can put absorbent material between you and the source, it will lower the dose. The recovery team used long handled equipment to put more distance between them and the source, they worked in 45 second (iirc) shifts, and when possible they ran behind rocks and other objects to ensure they were shielded from the source wherever possible. There is simply no material that can absorb radiation that they could have clothing made out of that would not have impaired their mobility significantly. Say that they did try and make suits out of lead to shield the team from radiation. The increased weight and lack of mobility would have likely lead to people falling over, slowing down the recovery. They would have been far slower running in and out of the recovery area, increasing the time they were exposed significantly, and they may have struggled with the initial manipulation of the source (which happened from a decent distance), potentially forcing them to get closer to the source for sections of the recovery. It seems very counter intuitive, but for this recovery operation any attempt to give PPE to the workers and increase the shielding they had would have lead to greater compromises in time and potentially distance. This may look like a team building social sports activity at a glance, but it is actually an incredibly well planned and executed source recovery that managed to ensure safety for all involved.

@mrnmrn1

Жыл бұрын

​@@q3st1on19 I would assume they might wore a lead-lined jacket like the ones used during x-ray examinations, under their coats.

@anhedonianepiphany5588

Жыл бұрын

The source was intact, so there was no need to protect their respiration or eyes etc.. The only real hazard was in the form of intense x-rays from the bremsstrahlung of strontium-90 (and its daughter products) beta decays.

@WillThat

Жыл бұрын

The only real "PPE" when handling sources in the field like that are distance and limiting the time exposed.

@tz8785

Жыл бұрын

@@mrnmrn1 With gamma radiation, wearing heavy protection can actually end up increasing the dose if you have to spend more time near the source or need more time to get close by and away again.

There are clever fans for wood stoves that use the Seebeck effect. There's a semiconductor module sandwiched between a heat pipe and heat sink and it is attached to a motor which drives the fan. The heat wicks up to the module, the heat is shed through the heat sink. The gradient produces enough voltage to run the fan which also helps cool the heat sink.

@kevincrosby1760

Жыл бұрын

At one time there was a unit built around a standard 6" or 8" flue pipe which was intended to be installed in the flue of a wood stove outside the building. Intent was to provide a small amount of battery charge when cooking in or heating an off-grid cabin. Heat sink was fins on the outside in the ambient outside air. Designed to supplement other means of battery charge.

Also, people that work to try to clean this up are heros.

Epic documentary bud. You showed great footage as well as pictures of what you were describing. You also broke some things down for the layman to understand. Im really looking forward to more content from you, i just luckily stumbled apon your channel and sometimes the algorithm gods are smiling at me and hook me up with great content like this. Have a great weekend and Cheers from Southern California USA!!

26:42 The fact that you can see the distortion from the heat coming off of that core is chilling.

I had no idea such contraptions existed, thanks Andy!

@AndyMcloone

Жыл бұрын

No one in the West does… why it’s such an interesting subject.

@Fossillarson

Жыл бұрын

I found out about small ones year ago used for light houses and remote weather stations 😊

@xaenon

Жыл бұрын

I suspected they existed. I mean, I knew they were used in unmanned spacecraft, and that means that all it would take is some ambitious, negligent git to envision a terrestrial use. I was thoroughly unsurprised to learn that it was the Soviets, but it totally fits with what we know of the cold war USSR.

@VenturiLife

Жыл бұрын

@@xaenon The USSR / Russians have a pretty cavalier attitude to nuclear power use, and contaminating things.

@ghost500e

Жыл бұрын

Well, voyager 1&2 surely is powered by similar tech, still working out there in space....

Excellent commentary and highly effective editing...I'm surprised this isn't shown as a training film in certain lines of work.

Andy, the quality here is such that I'm happy to be another subscriber. I look forward to more.

What shocks me is how dangerous this stuff can be to people who are foolhardy, yet how safe it can be as soon as you know and you're prudent. The gap in knowledge isn't even that wide... A very ambivalent impression

@777jones

Жыл бұрын

And are humans always prudent? Statistical question. That will provide a factual answer about safety of the tech.

Standard bolts even on electrical equipment are forbidden in some places, so putting them on radiation equipment is unbelievable. I cannot imagine any reason these devices would've had to be opened up at the site of use.

@heyhoe168

Жыл бұрын

It was not supposed to fall in hands of any unqualified personal. However here we are.

@edwardjohannes360

Жыл бұрын

Safety regulations in Russia. Neyt!

@voidseeker4394

Жыл бұрын

I don't think non-stanard bolts were ever a thing in USSR. Never seen one on soviet equipment ever. And, being an engineer and tech junkie living in post-soviet country, i've mess around with a lot of old soviet crap.

@chris746568462

Жыл бұрын

Making non standard would require additional cost and manufacture.. so you can see why they did it. Easy assembly and readily available. Who cares about the safety....

@Blazo_Djurovic

Жыл бұрын

Thinking that the generator would need to have special safety would require the engineer to imagine it would be common for a Soviet Citizen to be just running arround complete bum fuck nowhere, to ignore the warning of radiation, and then to have industrial tool to fuck with the magical box powering a lighthouse or something. Only way for that to happen would be to imagine engineer imagining that USSR could collapse and all these radiation sources suddenly be left unatended which would be contrary to procedure they were supposed to be used with.

Wow. This is one of the best KZread videos I have ever seen. I've watched tens of thousands of videos, but I think I'll remember this one for the rest of my life.

Very informative, really liked the commentary and pacing, everything was also explained in detail. Thank you for taking the time making this.

My childhood tree house was built 10x better than those wooden lighthouses 🤣

@sergeygalayda2931

Жыл бұрын

If you about 17:07 and 18:17 it's not lighthouse as you think. It is a navigation sign. Boards nailed with gap to lessen wind load. From the distance it's looks like billboard painted red with vertical black line. At night time some coded light device or even radio beacon perhaps.

@Microtonal_Cats

Жыл бұрын

But think how much cooler your childhood tree house would have been with a constant flow of electricity from an on-site thermo-nuclear generator.

@Jijhebtmijnnaamnietnodig

Жыл бұрын

@@Microtonal_Cats if you look at a universe level he had multible nuclear generators hooked up his tree house if he had a extension cord to it

@tommykane4621

Жыл бұрын

"Dad can you go with me in your truck to pick up the thermo-nu-clear® device for unlimited heat and lights for our ice fishing hut on Michigan's U P?"

It's a real shame such an amazing technology isn't respected and abused like this giving it a bad name, RTG's have the ability to do amazing things on Erath if the technology is properly engineered and treated with respect.

@heyhoe168

Жыл бұрын

Well, no. It has horrible efficiency and thus only good for space, due to it compactness.

@Proximitron

Жыл бұрын

@Hey hoe You are sort of right that the danger outweights the actual usefulness, BUT its not the efficiency. It doesn't mather if the efficiency is 1% if a pellet with the size of a marbel has the energy content of million liters of oil.

@AndieBlack13

Жыл бұрын

Given that many "first world" countries have perhaps hundreds of Nuclear power-plants, making electricity, if the expended nuclear fuel could be "reused" to power RTGs, imagine all that spent fuel in sealed, "idiot-proof" RTGs in every home supplying decades and decades of electric power????? But, the height of human intelligence is only as high as the most stupid of us...

@donaldsherman1

Жыл бұрын

@@heyhoe168 seems like it worked pretty darn well for its intended use…. Show me a solar panel that would work as well as a 8” block of strontium 90.

@nicholasm5184

Жыл бұрын

@@donaldsherman1 any modern solar panel. the rtg could only output 250W thermal energy and even if we assume the maximum amound of scavengable power using modern thermocouples (8%) you would only get 20W usable energy. Assuming maximum output for solar panels (20W/sqf) you would be able to generate the same amount of energy with a singular square foot sized solar panel, which would take less resources and space than the soviet RTG

Now that was interesting, informative and terrifying in equal measures. Great job, thank you!

This was so interesting. I've never heard of these nuclear generators before. The story about the woodsman who stumbled across one of these was sad. But, it was impressive how the crew of workers handled the situation at the end. Subscribed 👍

It’s remarkable what a human being will order others to do when they themselves don’t have to see it, touch it, do it, or be anywhere near it.

@Kenionatus

10 ай бұрын

I'd totally work with an RTG given I'm given training and resources to do it safely. Probably a lot safer to do a recovery of a lost core once in a lifetime than work a couple decades in forestry.

I’ve been interested in these generatorsafter reading about them several years ago. Superb video and research, been looking for something like this channel for years

I've seen this story recounted many times on YT as a spooky/scary story or a mini doc, but you my good Sir actually bring the goods, you tell the same story but then BANG ! you chuck in the reality of what really happened, A+.

You really did an excellent job in researching and preparing this video. Thank you for bringing some more history to my attention in such an entertaining way. This was Mark Felton level!

18:42 A winter, so cold, water inside a RTG froze🤯 That is some nasty weather over there.

Something to note with the thermal electric generator you showed on the old kerosene lamps, the electricity the generator made was always passive, or not its primary use. Sadly, it never is good for anything more than passive as the radiator fins you have heat up and need a fan to cool them off to keep it running efficiently enough to produce enough power for a radio to sound clean. Granted, it did help being on the source of light and heat for some families back then to stay warm enough.

@jaycee330

Жыл бұрын

It didn't help with heating the room, as you stated, you needed a fan to cool them. Russians would have to open the window instead, so they have to wear warm clothing just to operate the radio.

@TheDiner50

8 ай бұрын

It is still a cool and relevant to the topic of the nuclear generators. But dose that not mean the nuclear versions also needed a cooling fan? Anyways even with the limitations of the tech it seems like the radio for "news" broadcasts would still be possible no? Remember growing up having anyone that cared gather at the TV for the evening news broadcast. It was at most a 30min broadcast or something. If the kerosene lamp was even able to sustain a understandable radio transmission for 15min it would be better then nothing right? You just have to keep track of time and tune in to the state run information. And in cold winter weather it would be possible to put the lamp outside in the door entrance? You know if you got a wind brake entrance or something. Like it has to be possible to cool it somehow enough for a bit of radio listening? Music and entertainment like we are used to might not be feasible but that was not the goal to begin with this kerosene lamps. Like back then you can totally believe that the kerosene lamp was going to heat up and light the cold room. If you get a radio broadcast at the same time then grate! If your running a kerosene lamps someone better be in the room anyways. Since you gather at the light source in the dark winter evenings. Only thing I was aware a light was able to power is the spinning decoration type. You know the kind of thing you put on top of the air flow of the light heating up the air. The air then pushes fan blades that is powerful enough to make something spin around. Not enough to generate anything worth mentioning in power. More power efficient lamps barely was able to make anything move. And LED lamps are scary. If they get truly hot then your really pushing some power! Or they are without any concept of fire safety and prone to catch on fire being badly designed and built.

This was excellent mate, I'd love to see more documentaries like this on the channel! Keep it up!

This is the best RTG Visio I’ve seen. If watched quite a few this was really informative and the footage completely set you apart.

This is something I never knew existed! Thanks for taking the time to create and share!

@VenturiLife

Жыл бұрын

Small ones were very common on space probes / landers, as they produce a lot more energy than solar, particularly if the probe is going to operate far away from the Sun.

It is important two note that Sr90 in the RTGs is in compounded form as Strontium titanate, which is water insoluble. So a wide spread environment contamination like with metallic Strontium from reactor accidents is not possible.

@jaycee330

Жыл бұрын

But if a terrorist could get a hold of it from an abandoned RTG, he could fashion a very nasty dirty bomb from it.

Interesting video, I heard about this problem a while ago. Currently I live in Ukraine originally I am from Montreal Canada. I love hunting and fishing but when I am doing so in the ex Soviet republics I have a Geiger meter on me. You absolutely never know what you can find there.

@bldontmatter5319

8 ай бұрын

Seems a bit pretentious but ok.

@nikostalk5730

7 ай бұрын

@@bldontmatter5319 it's always better to be prepped, than just badly die in unknown location.

Brilliant documentary sir! 👏 Thank you for putting something so interesting and informative together. I love Cold War and nuclear histories.

So glad the KZread algorithm let me find your channel, thanks for making this video, really great! Subscribed

@AndyMcloone

Жыл бұрын

Awesome, thank you!

Despite the danger, it’s an ingenious energy source. If only they used higher quality materials and safety measures they could be running somewhat well to this day for their intended purpose. A key part being remote areas and well constructed installations. Shame it ended up this way.

@danclmb

11 ай бұрын

Some day they will make a generator that’s fueled by an isotope no larger than a pill.

Thank you for making and sharing this video.

When I did stumble upon Kyle Hill's video on the Lia event I was left with the question about why the RTGs were built, what they were used for, and why they became orphaned (installed at remote locations). Your video does add that missing context, which is why I'd like to thank you for adding that background information.

Brilliant work as always! These films are gems.

Hah I was about to comment about the high quality of this video, and see there's already a lot of praise. Comprehensive, accurate, and accessible is a rare combination, but you nailed it here.

One of the best videos i've ever seen on youtube, Thank You!

Good video, no adverts, to the point, well researched. Well done!

RTG can be a solution, but it has to be very well planned. Deploing it outside without any protection is absolute crazy. They need at least a Concrete housing wich is Storm proof and a Stainless Metal shield as corrosive protection.

Absolutely amazing video, never heard these stories before and the narrative really ties the research and historical detail together, well done!

@danielmarshall4587

Жыл бұрын

I had heard the "men in the woods finding radioactive item" story but in no where near the same detail. As you say absoluty amazing video.

Nice documentary I like the way you cut it, the narrative, the original removal of the rtgs core, thanks for this.

Amazing video. Thanks for creating and sharing!

I had never heard of these Russian RTG units deployed along the coast. In addition I don't remember ever hearing about the incident in Georgia back in '01 & '02. This is the kind of story The History Guy would do. It's crazy what the Soviets used during the Cold War. Great, informative video.

@ShaLun42

Жыл бұрын

have you ever heard about mobile nuclear power plants?

I had heard of the exposure. Seeing the footage from the hospital and the recovery was amazing. Thanks for sharing.

Andy, the USSR also used RTG's in low Earth Orbit in their Upravlyaemy Sputnik Aktivnyy or US-A, AKA RORSAT program with some spectacular failures such as Cosmos 954. Could be an interesting avenue for you.

@CoastalSphinx

Жыл бұрын

US-A did not have RTGs, they had nuclear reactors. Compared to RTGs, reactors had a higher power-to-weight ratio, and they also allowed direct control of the power output. The major disadvantage was short operational life, which is why there were so many of them.

@waltrohrbach2459

7 ай бұрын

This is completely wrong, USAs NASA used RTGs on many space probes like on each of the voyager and pioneer probes and many more. A prominent probe raising global concern because of its close passage to earth after a sling orbit around the sun for gaining speed, was the Cassini Huygens Probe launched in 1997 which had three (3) RTG on board. Esy to research, just check out the Cassini wikipedia page for starters ( and yes, these were all bonafide RTG )

@waltrohrbach2459

7 ай бұрын

On more than 24 space probes and missions since 1961, including on the moon, NASA used RTG's. From the horses mouth: science.nasa.gov/mission/cassini/radioisotope-thermoelectric-generator/ ( and ironically it was the USSR that focused on using nuclear reactors in space rather than RTGs, according to a wikipedia article)

Excellent Doc, Andy. Just discovered your channel. Great production. You obviously put a lot of work into this. Greetings from Fife, Scotland ! ( Just up the Road from Rosyth. )

Great Video. What a bizarre malicious attitude that someone in Russia decided by stopping the assistance in the recovery of lost RTGs

@jskratnyarlathotep8411

Жыл бұрын

They simply don't care. That stop was only to piss off the west.

@dasy2k1

Жыл бұрын

Bizzare and malicious... Kind of sums up the current leadership of the Russian federation

@krashd

Жыл бұрын

Russia is now an enemy of the US and EU so why on Earth would they want Americans and Europeans traipsing all around their country taking pictures and sending information back home? The first thing you do when you're at war with someone is kick their officials out of your country.

Thank you for showing me about this, I didn't have a clue this was a thing! Also, a big thank you for proper subtitles!

Very educational and well put together. I learn new things everyday thanks to well made videos like this

Very interesting. I had seen a presentation on this on another KZreadr’s channel but this is much more in-depth, thank you.

Absolutely incredible documentary, and excellent narration. That is definitely the most dangerous, radioactive device I ever heard of. Wow! Scary!

@heyhoe168

Жыл бұрын

How about chinese "negative ion bracelet" they sell to uneducated alternative medicine lovers?

I knew of these generators and the concern that was held with the collapse of Soviet authority. I had not realised the extent of the concern. So thank you sir for making such an unabashed video on this. I am a big advocate of modernity and the tech involved with it, a lot that the USSR lead on. Such an ingenious solution at the time but sometimes current solutions can lead to big problems down the road. My biggest focus at the moment is the Aral Sea. A reaction to industrialised cotton production but at the expense of draining a sea. Read into it. Fascinating vid on RTGs though. You have my thanks.

@rogerwilco2

Жыл бұрын

Indeed.

@ThePurplePassage

Жыл бұрын

the drying up of the Aral sea is an environmental disaster

@jirislavicek9954

Жыл бұрын

Yes, the destruction of the Aral Sea is the largest man-made environmental disaster of all times. At least on the regional level. We can speculate on the historic role of man in desertification of Sahara. All other disasters are peanuts compared to this.

I have a morbid fascination with all this nuclear technology and i have been aware of these and a few incidents with abandoned tech for a while. This was a good bit of story telling and it was nice to get some good solid info and nice photos of the real devices for a change, they are a lot bigger than i originally thought, iv been toying with the idea of making my own non-nuclear miniature version of such a device for a while now that could provide power when camping or out in the sticks. Good video definitely a like from me.

Great vid Andy, very interesting and well produced. Thanks for posting. 😊

dude who grabs it with the tongs and puts it next to the bucket is a chad. probobly got a big dose being that close, but probobly saved other guys from having to come forward and be around the puck any longer then necessary, or dragging the operation out increasing the dosage and potential for failure as they got tired. he deserves a hero of the soviet union medal or the gorgean equivalent

@jaycee330

Жыл бұрын

Nope, wiki states the maximum dosage recorded was slightly over 1mSv, which is 10% the radiation of a full-body CAT scan.

This was awesome! Mark Felton level research and delivery.

@AndyMcloone

Жыл бұрын

Thankyou , I wish I was in Mark Felton’s league😌

@jeffreyepsteinsclientlist6714

Жыл бұрын

@@AndyMcloone I sincerely mean that mate. After briefly checking out some of your other vids, it is obvious that you put a lot of time and effort into the research, and production. And despite there being so much information, all of which being relevant, you manage to keep it interesting enough that I not only pay attention, I want to learn more. Also, I'm glad to hear you hold Mark Felton in such high esteem, and I'm pleased you took the compliment in the manner in which it was intended. Would love to see more Soviet Russia/Germany era vids in the future. And I will definitely be spending some time going through your playlist. Subed!👍🏻 🤘🏻From🇦🇺

@horstebreedow8608

Жыл бұрын

Mark Feltons ego could out power a rtg. You're above his league.

Thank you for showing this, very good!

This video is awesome. I'm so glad I stumbled onto it. So informative and well presented. 👍🏻

And what do you think Russia’s nuclear arsenal looks like if they couldn’t even dismantle these devices before people started scavenging them. What a mess. Great video by the way.

@gustavevilleneuvedehoff-un5459

Жыл бұрын

Wrong assumption. Russia upon recovery from USSR collapse did bring things in order. The pieces that fell from it however struggled. Today you gotta be more concerned with the now failing ex-superpowers - that's the real issue.

@TheLongDon

11 ай бұрын

​@@gustavevilleneuvedehoff-un5459Why do you say that like there are multiple? There were only 2 superpowers in history, the USSR and the USA. The USA is still a superpower

@belekas2729

11 ай бұрын

@@gustavevilleneuvedehoff-un5459 What you're talking about... russia is still in a big mess.

@mabamabam

11 ай бұрын

@@gustavevilleneuvedehoff-un5459 Yes, "failing ex superpowers" otherwise known as Russia

Excellent documentary, so well put together and a fascinating incident to hear about.

Great job , really nicely done. Thank you

Thank you for subtitles!!! As someone with hearing impairment it really helps me understand everything. Thanks for this video :)

I've always been curious about those Soviet RTGs. Thanks for making such an excellent video about them and showing the actual footage of the Lia recovery. Is it weird that I kinda want one? Without the radioactive source of course!

@kevincrosby1760

Жыл бұрын

I can't find the article now, but there was a company which actually produced a Thermoelectric Generator which incorporated a short section of standard 6" or 8" flue pipe and was intended to charge batteries. The intent was to provide a system which could be installed outside in the flue from a wood-burning stove which would enable you to charge a small battery bank whenever you lit a fire for heating or cooking in your off-grid remote cabin. The cold side was furnished with fins exposed to the outside ambient air. The target population was those who just needed a little bit extra charge power in the winter when the solar didn't work as well, the water wheel was useless, and the wind turbine was spotty.

Wow, this is one of my new favourite channels! Great Video! :)

@AndyMcloone

Жыл бұрын

Wow, thanks!

Great job Andy. Thanks.

Amazing andy! Thanks for sharing this

the international atomic energy agency IAEA has picked up several of those, that were abandonned, neglected or forgotten after the end of the Soviet Union.

Great work, thanks for documenting it so well. Kids 100 years plus from now will be looking back at things like this in their history lessons, saying what crazy people they were in the olden days, lol.

@kevincrosby1760

Жыл бұрын

...kind of like the Romans storing slightly acidic wine in lead containers, allowing the wine to dissolve rather large amounts of lead before consumption.

That story was crazy... Thank you for sharing!

Fantastic video. Very well done obtaining and narrating the information and footage.