Scientists have figured out the reason London fog killed 12,000 people
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Re: Scientists have figured out the reason London fog killed 12,000 people
#2So the compounds released from burning coal and the compounds found inside natural fog – an aqueous medium made of, you guessed it, water – work together to make droplets of sulphuric acid, the same stuff that makes 'acid rain'.
Remind me again why we can't have nuclear power?
Re: Scientists have figured out the reason London fog killed 12,000 people
#3So the compounds released from burning coal and the compounds found inside natural fog – an aqueous medium made of, you guessed it, water – work together to make droplets of sulphuric acid, the same stuff that makes 'acid rain'. Remind me again why we can't have nuclear power?
While I sympathize with your sentiment, it's really disingenuous to play dumb.
Chernobyl and Fukushima would immediately come to mind.
Re: Scientists have figured out the reason London fog killed 12,000 people
#4Kind of how mustard gas works, compound that turns to sulphuric acid when it gets wet.
Re: Scientists have figured out the reason London fog killed 12,000 people
#5So the compounds released from burning coal and the compounds found inside natural fog – an aqueous medium made of, you guessed it, water – work together to make droplets of sulphuric acid, the same stuff that makes 'acid rain'. Remind me again why we can't have nuclear power?
While I sympathize with your sentiment, it's really disingenuous to play dumb. Chernobyl and Fukushima would immediately come to mind.
"Nuclear power isn't 100% harmless" is a bad argument here, given the number of people that due from coal mining and processing and coal-originated externalities on an annual basis.
The number of deaths (including future cancer cases) due to Fukushima is estimated to be in the hundreds on the high end. Chernobyl is expected to have killed around 4,000 after cancer takes its toll. That's a miniscule drop in the bucket compared to the number of deaths directly and indirectly attributable to coal power.
Re: Scientists have figured out the reason London fog killed 12,000 people
#6So the compounds released from burning coal and the compounds found inside natural fog – an aqueous medium made of, you guessed it, water – work together to make droplets of sulphuric acid, the same stuff that makes 'acid rain'. Remind me again why we can't have nuclear power?
Because nuclear leaves toxic waste that lasts over 10000 years in the best case; and because wind, hydro, solar, and tidal are better alternatives in most cases.
Re: Scientists have figured out the reason London fog killed 12,000 people
#7There's a new Netflix Original called The Crown, and a few episodes in the London Fog of 1952 is a prominent plot point (no spoilers beyond that, though if you're a history buff it shouldn't be much of a spoiler anyway). Made me think considerably about how far we've come in terms of environmental regulations and our understanding of weather patterns.
I had honestly completely forgotten this even happened until that episode (though it gets a few of the finer details wrong, but nothing catastrophic.)
Re: Scientists have figured out the reason London fog killed 12,000 people
#8So the compounds released from burning coal and the compounds found inside natural fog – an aqueous medium made of, you guessed it, water – work together to make droplets of sulphuric acid, the same stuff that makes 'acid rain'. Remind me again why we can't have nuclear power?
Because it's insanely expensive and if we're going to go with the insanely expensive solution we should go with the one that's fully green and has lower start-up costs.
Re: Scientists have figured out the reason London fog killed 12,000 people
#9So the compounds released from burning coal and the compounds found inside natural fog – an aqueous medium made of, you guessed it, water – work together to make droplets of sulphuric acid, the same stuff that makes 'acid rain'. Remind me again why we can't have nuclear power?
Because nuclear leaves toxic waste that lasts over 10000 years in the best case; and because wind, hydro, solar, and tidal are better alternatives in most cases.
(Shrug) Put it in Antarctica. It'll be fine for 10,000 years there. No one will stumble across it accidentally, and we can get it back if we need it.
I've never understood why this is considered a problem.
Re: Scientists have figured out the reason London fog killed 12,000 people
#10So the compounds released from burning coal and the compounds found inside natural fog – an aqueous medium made of, you guessed it, water – work together to make droplets of sulphuric acid, the same stuff that makes 'acid rain'. Remind me again why we can't have nuclear power?
While I sympathize with your sentiment, it's really disingenuous to play dumb. Chernobyl and Fukushima would immediately come to mind.
How many people did these two incidents kill?