Episode Details

An Army Reactor Exploded in 1961. Three Men Died. The Cause Was Never Confirmed.

Every story in here actually happened. New episodes Monday through Saturday.

Sources: https://www.osti.gov/search/semantic:SL-1+accident; https://www.inl.gov/history/; https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/

Visual credits: - "ARA-II. After SL-1 explosion, operators shielded crane cab try to open door of SL-1 tank building. January 6, 1961. Ineel photo no. 61-80. Photographer- Holmes. - Idaho National HAER ID-33-D-76.tif" by Related names: Louter, David, transmitter Reynolds, Larry, photographer; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ARA-II. After SL-1 explosion, operators shielded crane cab try to open door of SL-1 tank building. January 6, 1961. Ineel photo no. 61-80. Photographer- Holmes. - Idaho National HAER ID-33-D-76.tif; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video. - "ARA-II. Exterior view of enclosed stairway leading from SL-1 support building (ARA-602) to operating floor of SL-1 reactor bldg. April 23, 1958. Ineel photo no. 58-2001. Photographer- HAER ID-33-D-67.tif" by Related names: Louter, David, transmitter Reynolds, Larry, photographer; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ARA-II. Exterior view of enclosed stairway leading from SL-1 support building (ARA-602) to operating floor of SL-1 reactor bldg. April 23, 1958. Ineel photo no. 58-2001. Photographer- HAER ID-33-D-67.tif; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video. - "ARA-II. Interior view of SL-1 reactor building with reactor head in place in center foreground. March 21, 1958. Ineel photo no. 58-1360. Photographer- Jack L. Anderson. - Idaho HAER ID-33-D-64.tif" by Related names: Louter, David, transmitter Reynolds, Larry, photographer; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ARA-II. Interior view of SL-1 reactor building with reactor head in place in center foreground. March 21, 1958. Ineel photo no. 58-1360. Photographer- Jack L. Anderson. - Idaho HAER ID-33-D-64.tif; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video. - "Sl-1-ineel61-667.jpg" by Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, INEEL 61-667; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sl-1-ineel61-667.jpg; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video. - "ARA-II. Interior view of SL-1 reactor building, camera looking up toward as top is placed. January 21, 1958. Ineel photo no. 58-349. Photographer- Jack L. Anderson. - Idaho National HAER ID-33-D-59.tif" by Related names: Louter, David, transmitter Reynolds, Larry, photographer; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ARA-II. Interior view of SL-1 reactor building, camera looking up toward as top is placed. January 21, 1958. Ineel photo no. 58-349. Photographer- Jack L. Anderson. - Idaho National HAER ID-33-D-59.tif; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video. - "Sl-1-ineel61-9.jpg" by Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, INEEL 61-9; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sl-1-ineel61-9.jpg; cropped, color-adjusted, and animated for video. - "ARA-II. Interior view of SL-1 reactor building, camera looking upward after top of building had been completed and put in place. January 24, 1958. Ineel photo no. 58-876. Photographer- HAER ID-33-D-60.tif" by Related names: Louter, David, transmitter Reynolds, Larry, photographer; Public domain https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ARA-II. Interior view of SL-1 reactor building, camera looking upward after top of building had been completed and put in place. January 24, 1958. Ineel photo no. 58-876.