Nuclear Power - a Reliable Energy Source for the Future

The United States needs a change in its energy sources. Oil, first of all, is a scarce resource that will eventually run out, and it also makes the U.S. depend on the political situation in other countries, as can be seen at the frequent changes in oil prices due to the political situation in the Middle-East. Alternative energy sources are an important issue to consider and nuclear energy is certainly the most controversial. There are currently 104 nuclear power plants operating in the United States, but the licenses of those plants will expire in foreseeable future, the first one already in 2013 and the last one in 2046 (Nuclear Energy Inst.). Those expiration dates initiate the discussions if the licenses should be renewed for the plants

[Statement of Facts] In the Elizabethan era, the main source of power was wood and it seemingly possible to the people at the time to be able to live off of it forever. As the demand went up, the quantity to power production was too low so the use of coal began to become popular. The same thing is now occurring in our modern era in terms of coal except this time, greenhouse gas emissions are now a factor to consider when choosing the right form of power to transfer to. The quantity to

This is one of the many new renewable resources. Solar energy is better than coal and oil but it still does have its disadvantages. First an advantage of solar energy is that it can be harnessed in all areas of the world. Meaning, we cannot run out of solar energy because the energy is being collected from the sun. The disadvantage to that if the dependency upon the weather. In this case, when it is a gloomy day the solar panels cannot collect energy. Also, the cost of solar energy is high. There are many things that going into the solar energy that must be paid for up front like solar panels, batteries, etc. Solar energy is stepping in the right direction however, there are still some disadvantages to

Nuclear power plants can be very beneficial to people. One reason why they are helpful is because it will bring more jobs to southern Indiana. Another reason why they are beneficial to our community is that it will decrease the Co2 emissions in the air. The third reason that Nuclear power can be beneficial is that it will it will save many lives for various reasons. This is why Nuclear Power can be beneficial.

After the Fukushima Daiichi accident, nuclear power was once again brought into the spotlight with one burning question: Is it worth the risks? Well, I believe it is, and that we can avoid those risks altogether if we do it properly. One of our biggest upcoming problems is climate change, and with solar and wind power not able to provide enough clean power, nuclear is the safe, reliable, realistic, and clean option.

The invention of the nuclear power plant was humanities greatest hopes but biggest fears. The energy is clean and frees us from using fossil fuels but it also screams disaster. There was an earth quake in Japan that caused a nuclear power plant to leak out radioactive steam. However there were 443 operating nuclear power plants in 47 countries in 2011 and in 2009 atomic energy accounted for 14 percent of the world’s energy production. In the United States alone 104 nuclear power plants supply some 20 percent of electricity.

Nuclear energy a reliable economical energy source or a primed radiation storm waiting to rain havoc down on the surroundings below. When you mention nuclear power people 's minds go to Chernobyl,Fukushima, and Three Mile Island meltdown catastrophes. A survey conduct of 27 college aged students shows people continue to believe nuclear energy brings safety concerns to the US due to some risk of danger (see Appendix A.) With nuclear energy comes risks for locals who live near a nuclear power plant, people who live in a country with a nuclear power plant, as well as risk for the entire plant.

Using nuclear energy as an alternate source of the world’s energy is a very controversial topic and has been for decades. While fossil fuels have been used for many years for generating the world’s energy, recently other sources of power have been discovered, tested, and used for many types of energy. Some fossil fuels include: oil, coal, and natural gas. While these fuels have their advantages as very effective, they have downsides such as pollution. Most of the pollution from fossil fuels comes from the combustion of them either in an internal combustion engine or a coal energy generating facility. The world today is very reliant on fossil fuels for many types of energy, and while some say its the only viable

According to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, fission is the process that releases large amounts of atomic energy, in the form of heat, by the splitting of nuclear atoms. Uranium is the main radiation used in nuclear power plants for the fission process. Fission is what gives us enough nuclear energy to boil water. The steam created is used to power larger turbines that activate generators that produce electrical power (NRC Glossary).

As each year passes, more and more electricity will be made as a result of increased nuclear power plants around the world. The economic benefits of nuclear energy are equally advantageous as the environmental aspects.

Alternatives to oil, along with the other fossil fuels, have been gaining popularity in the wake of high prices and elevated awareness of global warming. While solar, wind, hydro, and even geothermal have been getting press about being the means to lower CO2 production, and become less dependent on foreign oil, there is an alternative that rarely is mentioned. The mere reference of nuclear power conjures images of meltdowns and mushroom clouds. Despite the advances in efficiency, safety, and technology, public opinion has changed little since the years of Chernobyl and Three Mile Island. It is this misguided sense of impending doom from nuclear power that has deterred much of the population from accepting it as a viable alternative to

Nuclear power has been slow to become a mainstream source of electricity in the world. Despite the fact that Nuclear power is arguably the most capable source of continuous, clean energy; the industry has been held back by safety and financial concerns. Current nuclear power plants, so-called Generation II reactors, are currently the largest source of carbon free electricity in the United States according to the Department of Energy (DoE).

Energy renaissance versus worldwide destruction, these two theories present common views regarding the utilization of nuclear power. Few energy resources have been spoken with such notoriety by some and praised as the final energy solution by others than nuclear power. However, the United States must increase its use of nuclear power in order to cover rising energy demand caused by the global energy crisis. In addition, nuclear power is and will be an important factor in combating atmospheric increases in CO2 and maintaining economic strength.

A much as nuclear power is a viable source of energy, it has some setbacks. The radioactive waste produced by the reactors need to be disposed off properly since they can be overly hazardous and may leak some radiations if not properly stored. Such forms of waste emits radiations from few to very many years. These emissions are deemed to harm the future generations greatly. The storage of the radioactive waste has been a major hindrance to the expansion programs. Thus, this essay aims at discussing that nuclear energy production is not a viable means of supplying the energy needs.

In today’s rapidly-advancing society, the depletion of fossil fuels, our main sources of energy, remains a constant motivator for the U.S. to harness nuclear power. While the fear of resource exhaustion and degradation of the environment encourages us to embrace nuclear energy as a solution, we fail to acknowledge the copious amounts of time and money needed to utilize nuclear energy, the political risks associated with large-scale use, and most importantly, the environmental and mortal consequences that can occur as a result of accidents.