The idea of a nuclear-powered cruise ship has been around for decades, but why has it never taken off? Nuclear Engineering International estimates that, given lower fuel costs, a given ship could break even within 10 to 20 years. Norwegian shipbuilding company Ulstein has developed a design concept for a cruise ship powered by a molten salt nuclear reactor. The 500-foot-long, 60-passenger ship, named Thor in reference to the Norse god, as well as the thorium used in the reactor core, would generate its electricity with the reactor on board. The ship would also serve as a charging station for a fully electric company ship called Sif, named after the goddess who was Thor's wife.
In the 1960s, nuclear energy was considered a revolutionary, almost unlimited source of energy. As one of the first ships powered by a nuclear reactor, N. S. Savannah was to prove that nuclear power was a safe, clean and almost unlimited source of energy that could revolutionize ships.
Because to make a trip around the land, a typical ship will burn more than twenty thousand barrels of bunker oil. All the time, emitting toxic smoke into the atmosphere. Savannah was designed to make that same trip without burning anything at all. Replacing an oil-burning engine with a small nuclear reactor promised to make the ships of the future more economical, faster and more reliable.
It would also eliminate the need for large fuel tanks, freeing up more space for cargo and passengers. Nuclear-powered ships could also travel for years without refueling, and travel at much higher speeds. President Eisenhower Launches Atoms for Peace Program. In an effort to win hearts and minds, research, funding and equipment would be sent around the world to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy. Savannah was built as a floating example of what a future driven by atomic energy could offer.
As the first of its kind, the ship would carry passengers and cargo at the same time. Savannah's 74-milliwatt cylindrical reactor was designed with overhead access for refueling. Along with the pressurized water reactor, primary coolant circuit and steam generator, it is housed in a 50-foot containment vessel covered with lead, concrete and polyethylene. To keep passengers and crew safe, a few meters from the reactor, engineers incorporated layers of protection. The reactor was surrounded by a primary radiation shield, a thick steel containment vessel and a 500 ton biological shield. In May 1964, Savannah embarked on an ambitious world tour to demonstrate the merits of nuclear energy.
Over the course of a year, he made visits to U. S cities along the East Coast and more than a dozen European ports, crossing the Atlantic several times in the process. The ship traveled almost 150,000 kilometers, using only 35 pounds of uranium. Every time Savannah arrived at a new port, huge crowds would form to greet him. In the first year alone, 1.4 million people lined up to tour the ship.
Savannah's world tour had gone fantastically well, generating enormous public interest and a lot of positive press. But despite all its success and promise of revolutionizing maritime trade with its almost unlimited source of energy and ability to travel for years without refueling at much higher speeds than traditional ships powered by oil-burning engines; Savannah's commercial operator was unable to convince Congress to fund additional four nuclear ships based on its design. The hidden dangers of radiation were widely feared and there were still many unanswered questions about how safe it really was to have a nuclear reactor on board a civilian ship. Despite all its potential benefits and promises of revolutionizing maritime trade; Savannah's commercial operator was unable to convince Congress to fund additional four nuclear ships based on its design. Savannah had made nuclear propulsion seem easy but there was nothing easy about operating a nuclear ship; before it could reach any port it needed special permits and there were still many unanswered questions about how safe it really was to have a nuclear reactor on board a civilian ship. Savannah had made nuclear propulsion seem easy but there were still many unanswered questions about how safe it really was to have a nuclear reactor on board a civilian ship; despite all its potential benefits and promises of revolutionizing maritime trade; Savannah's commercial operator was unable to convince Congress to fund additional four nuclear ships based on its design.
The idea of using nuclear power for cruise ships has been around for decades but despite all its potential benefits and promises of revolutionizing maritime trade; Savannah's commercial operator was unable to convince Congress to fund additional four nuclear ships based on its design. Savannah had made nuclear propulsion seem easy but there were still many unanswered questions about how safe it really was to have a nuclear reactor on board a civilian ship; despite all its potential benefits and promises of revolutionizing maritime trade; this revolutionary idea never took off.
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