The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant is a former nuclear power station in northern Ukraine, near the city of Pripyat and about a hundred kilometres north of Kyiv. Construction began in the 1970s, and it eventually had four RBMK graphite-moderated reactors operating, with more planned. On 26 April 1986 reactor number four exploded during a safety test, in the worst nuclear accident in history, spreading radioactive material across Europe and forcing the evacuation of Pripyat and a large exclusion zone. The remaining reactors continued to produce power for years, and the last one was shut down in December 2000. A huge steel shelter was slid over the destroyed reactor in 2016, and the site is still being decommissioned.
Before and after
- 26 December 1971Birth of Jared Leto
- 1972Saturn Awards
- 1972Creation of C
- 1972Creation of Prolog
- from 1972 to 2000Construction of Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant
- 1972Creation of Smalltalk
- 1972Establishment of Taï National Park
- 1972Discovery of Lloyds Bank coprolite
- 1972Establishment of Kluane National Park and Reserve
More in Art, literature & culture
- 1946First edition of Cannes Film Festival
- from 25 August 1966 to 11 September 2001Construction of World Trade Center
- 27 May 1992Publication of Azərbaycan marşı
- 2003Construction of Three Gorges Dam
- 2009Premiere of As Aventuras de Gui & Estopa
- from 17 September 2021 to 27 June 2025Premiere of Squid Game
The era
This moment belongs to the Contemporary world (1945 CE to today), the world since 1945. You can also browse everything in the 20th century.