E1. The World's First Plutonium Factory. This is the Hanford “B” Reactor. In it, uranium metal was bombarded with neutrons to mass-produce the plutonium explosive used in the Trinity atomic bomb test at Alamogordo on July 16, 1945. Plutonium from the “B” reactor also formed the core of the bomb dropped on Nagasaki on August 9, 1945. Nuclear reactors were first designed to produce plutonium for bombs. The reactor concept was later adapted to boil water and generate electricity; but even commercial power reactors continue to produce plutonium. The “B”reactor operated from 1944 until 1968. Hanford Reservation, 200 Area, Richland, Washington. 16 November 1984.
These photographs by Robert Del Tredici are protected by copyright and are available for purchase as high-quality digital prints on archival paper or as silver gelatin prints from bdeltredici@hotmail.com.