A NUCLEAR reactor designed to generate power in the basement of an apartment
block is being developed in Japan. In the past few months government-backed
researchers have been testing a fail-safe mechanism for the reactor, which will
close down automatically if it overheats.
The Rapid-L reactor was conceived as a powerhouse for colonies on the Moon.
But at 6 metres high and only 2 metres wide this 200-kilowatt reactor could
relatively easily fit into the basement of an office building or apartment
block, where it would have to be housed in a solid containment building.
“In the future it will be quite difficult to construct further…
