Pros and cons of nuclear energy

When you hear the word nuclear energy what comes to your mind first? Perhaps, an image of a nuclear bomb comes to your mind. Before we jump into the pros and cons of nuclear energy, it is important to know what is nuclear energy? Nuclear energy is produced through the process of splitting atoms, mostly it is uranium atoms. When it is split it becomes smaller and lighter atoms. The loss mass is converted into heat because energy doesn't just disappear. This heat used to produce energy. Now, you can check out the pros and cons of nuclear energy to know more about it. 

Pros OR Advantages of nuclear energy: 

1. Nuclear energy is one of the most cost-effective energy solutions available. The cost to produce energy from nuclear energy is quite lower than from gas, coal or oil. 
2. Nuclear energy is a reliable source of energy. While some energy resources are dependent on weather conditions such as solar, wind energy. It is reliable because we have enough uranium on the planet to generate energy for the next 70 to 80 years. 
3. Nuclear energy is stable baseload energy. It is widely used in the United States estimated at around 20% of all energy generated. 
4. Nuclear energy produces low pollution. The pollution from nuclear power plants is quite low compared to energy production from fossil fuels. 
5. The uranium used in a nuclear power plant is estimated to last another 80 years as compared to fossil fuels have a much more limited lifespan. If we continue consuming fossil fuels and keep increasing consumption then, we will run out of oil by 2052. 
6. Nuclear energy has a high energy density. It releases much greater amounts of energy than fossil fuels. Nuclear fission is nearly 8000 times more efficient to produce energy than fossil fuels. 

Cons OR Disadvantages of nuclear energy: 

1. Nuclear power plants are expensive to build, despite being relatively inexpensive to operate.
2. The nuclear power plant is a disaster at Chernobyl. We don't even know exactly how many people died as a result of the Chernobyl incident. It is estimated that there have been 10000 deaths from the long-term effects of radiation in the region. 
3. Although nuclear energy production does not produce any emissions, it does produce radioactive waste that must be securely stored so it doesn't pollute the surrounding environment. The small quantities of radiation are not harmful but the radioactive waste from nuclear energy production is dangerous. 
4. Nuclear power plants have a major impact on the environment than just the waste they produce. The mining of uranium is not an environmentally friendly process. 
5. The nuclear power plant has a unique threat to our national security. Terrorists might target nuclear power plants with the intention of creating a big disaster. Thus, security surrounding nuclear materials and nuclear power plants is extremely important. 
6. Uranium is not renewable although nuclear energy is a clean source of power. 

Thank you for reading this article, If you have any queries regarding this article on the pros and cons of Nuclear energy then feel free to do comment and give suggestions in the comment section below. 

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