Post by lordroel on Apr 9, 2022 15:41:11 GMT
The 1973 Oil Crisis helped to kick start Nuclear technology.
The Western Nations started construction program on nuclear reactors to become more independent from Arabic oil import.
The "Mad Men" produced several highly effective advertisements appealling to the National pride of the people,
In an attempt to dispell the anti-nuclear sentiment of the late-60s early-70s enviromental movement.
Slogans such as "Nuclear Power is FRENCH National Power!" or "Atomic Power for America"
became increasingly influential as the cost of gasoline, food, electricity and the general stagflation following the 1973 oil crisis worsend.
This combined with an increasingly, technologically optimistic culture following both the American and Soviet lunar landings
(and early Space Stations) helped reduce the anti-nuclear movement in West Germany, the United States and France.
At the same time the soviets also started construction program on nuclear reactors to counter increase need for electric power in USSR and East Block.
There had never been any organized opposition to nuclear electricity in Eastern block and Kosygin,
hoping to economically rather than militarily compete with the US in fields other than merely space also supported the new energy source's promise.
Next to Nuclear Reactors for Power production, There were several other projects.
Nuclear Power for civilian ships, the USA, France, Germany and USSR had all built several experimental commercial ships where there engines were nuclear.
Following the 1973 oil crisis, fuel costs increased sufficiently to make even the government operated and run
NS Savannah (the first US atomic oceanliner/cargo carrier) which was never intended make a profit, economically competitive.
After a series of long, drawn out, difficult negotiations on the Standards and Regulations on Nuclear Reactor Safety in 1978,
The Treaty on use of Nuclear reactors on civilians Ships was ratified. The First ships enter in service were German Container ships,
while the french government converted the hull's of previously oil burning ocean liners.
The Japanese's built the first nuclear powered Super oil tankers some time later.
The French Ocean-liner NS FRANCE, The first converted to a Nuclear engine
Unfortunately for the industry the dream for Nuclear powered aircraft remained unrealised, All national air safety organization such as the US National Transportation Safety Board refused the idea outright.
While there had been some early ideas about a nuclear-powered long range bomber in the early 1960s, these ideas never became practical about question on safety of the nuclear reactor during air crash.
Talking of nuclear disaster, the beautiful, ideal world of nuclear power was shaken by accidents in end of 1970s!
A French build Gas cooled reactors and a US pressurised water reactor had partial Meltdown.
both made World news and panic, but this let to initiative for more saver nuclear reactors designs and better safety.
The Soviets had own taste on that in 1971 as test run of Experimental Thermal nuclear engine RD-0410 goes disastrous.
ended in meltdown and massive contaminations of Semipalatinsk test site and near by Irtysh River!
Responsible for Disaster was a engineer named Anatoly Stepanovich Dyatlov,
The investigation report found him guilty for "criminal mismanagement of potentially dangerous device“.
He was sentenced to ten years in prison.
After that stricter security measures were taken in running Soviet nuclear installations.
Nuclear powered ships, now they can be build big.
Even for France in the 1960's this is rather an OTL reaction.