With the beginning of autumn, you can hear the question: "What date is the day of the nuclear scientist?" This is due to the fact that the citizens of the country are used to: professional holidays are celebrated on weekends in a certain week of the month. Here the situation is different. The Decree of the President of the Russian Federation (03.06.2005) determined a specific date - September 28. Since 2008, the Republic of Kazakhstan has also joined the celebration.
Rosatom
Before the holiday was established, more than 250 thousand employees of three hundred and sixty nuclear industry enterprises celebrated their professional holiday together with power engineers on December 22nd. The industry is headed by the state corporation Rosatom (since 2007), uniting in its composition:
- Civilian industrial companies.
- Nuclear weapons production facilities.
- Research Institute of Nuclear Physicists.
- Icebreaking fleet.
Heads the state corporation Sergey Kiriyenko, once the youngest head of the Government of the Russian Federation(1998).
The Day of the Atomic Engineer is a kind of industry report to the country, because the powers of the state corporation also include issues of nuclear safety, the development of science and the fulfillment of international obligations.
History of the creation of the industry
The day of September 28 is not determined by chance. The date is associated with 1942, when the order of the State Defense Committee of the USSR approved the start of work on uranium and created a special laboratory. Scientific research was headed by Academician I. V. Kurchatov, whose name is now the main scientific center of nuclear energy. The war limited the possibilities of research activities, so the first nuclear tests in 1945 were carried out by the Americans. After the Great Patriotic War, the use of nuclear energy for military purposes was intensified, for which an interdepartmental committee was even created under the leadership of L. P. Beria.
August 1949 is a historical date. This is the time of the first nuclear tests in Semipalatinsk, 32 months after the launch of the first nuclear reactor. Despite the difficulties of the post-war years, it took the Soviet Union the same amount of time as the United States. The Atomic Worker's Day in Russia is celebrated by the entire scientific community involved in this outstanding event. Scientist Lev Ryabev recalls that school graduates after the August days of 1949 rushed to the physics departments in order to race with a potential enemy. A third of his classmates today work in the nuclear industry. The first nuclear power plant in the world, where the atom was put at the service of man, was the power plant in the city of Obninsk (July 1954).
Russian nuclear industry
Today there are 10 nuclear power plants in the country, whose share in electricity generation is 18.6%. And in the European part of Russia it exceeds 33%. The largest nuclear power plants are Balakovskaya (a photo of S. V. Kiriyenko’s visit there can be seen in the article), Kalininskaya (closest to the capital), Kurskaya and Leningradskaya. Currently, eight more power units are being built in the country and thirty-eight - abroad. Russia is the only state that owns a nuclear-powered icebreaker fleet. A floating nuclear power plant, which is being built at the B altic Shipyard, will soon be put into operation.
The Atomic Worker's Day is a holiday for those involved in uranium mining. In terms of nuclear fuel reserves, Russia occupies the third position in the world, behind Australia and Kazakhstan. In 2015, uranium production amounted to 3 thousand tons, which brought the country to the second place on the planet. After the tragic events in Chernobyl, science has focused on the problem of the safety of nuclear energy.
Nuclear industry of Kazakhstan
The Republic of Kazakhstan, which was part of the USSR, was the most important component of the country's nuclear power. On its territory is located not only the Semipalatinsk test site, but also the largest Ulba plant, which produced nuclear fuel components. In May 2008, President Nazarbayev signed a decree establishing September 28 as a professional holiday. The Atomic Worker's Day in Kazakhstan, as well as in Russia, is timed to coincide with the events of 1942. By choosingnuclear-free future, the country closed the infamous test site, but does a lot for the development of the nuclear industry.
Kazakhstan provides 33% of the world's needs for uranium, being the leader in its production. Eleven enterprises employ about 10,000 workers. In total, more than 25 thousand people are preparing to celebrate the professional holiday. Kazatomprom and Rosatom have joined forces by creating the Uranium Enrichment Center in order to offer customers not raw materials, but finished fuel. To date, there are no operating nuclear power plants in the country, but plans for 2018 include the start of construction of the first station.
Congratulations
Atomic Worker's Day is not a day off, but traditionally all festive events are scheduled for September 28th. It is customary in the media to congratulate those who were at the origins of the industry, and who are directly related to it today. The best employees and scientists receive awards, including from the WANO worldwide organization. Last year, the nuclear industry celebrated its 70th anniversary (the countdown is from the launch of the first reactor), so the celebration was held on a special scale. The industry has been deservedly called the technological backbone of the state. Every year, a big festive concert is held in Moscow with the performance of pop stars, among which Sofia Rotaru is especially popular.
Congratulations on the Day of the Atomic Worker were also received in Kazakhstan, where the nuclear industry is the hallmark of the country. In 2015, it was headed by A. K. Zhumagaliev,coming from the Ministry of Investment and Development. In the country, the best in the profession are awarded the title of Honored Worker of the Nuclear Industry of the Republic of Kazakhstan with the award of a gold or silver badge. In Russia - Honored Worker of the Nuclear Industry of the Russian Federation. In honor of the anniversary, a special medal was established, awarded to veterans of the industry.
Memory
On the day of the nuclear scientist, it is customary to remember those who, at the cost of life and he alth, defended humanity in those days of terrible tragedies, when the peaceful atom got out of control of its creator.
1957-29-09 The Kyshtym tragedy occurred in the Chelyabinsk region at the Mayak plant, where nuclear waste is processed. Three largest regions were in the zone of radiation contamination: Sverdlovsk, Tyumen and Chelyabinsk. Twenty-three settlements were abandoned by residents, and the military and civilian population were thrown to eliminate the accident. 20 million Curies amounted to a release of radiation
Radiation of 50 million turned Pripyat into a preserved monument to the Chernobyl tragedy of 1986, leaving 300 thousand people homeless. The liquidators of the consequences of the Chernobyl accident are real heroes who prevented the development of an even more terrible catastrophe.
September 28 is a day of gratitude not only to these people, but also to those professionals who ensure the safe operation of the nuclear industry today.
