Nuclear Monitor #937
Erik Plakman
Sunday, April 26 marks the 40th anniversary of one of the worst man-made disasters in history, which occurred at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
Reactor 4 of the plant exploded following a failed test, and large quantities of radioactive material were released into the air by the ensuing fire.
The contamination was global. Caesium-137 alone contaminated more than twenty European countries.
In recent days, there has been extensive (media) coverage worldwide of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.
Below is a small selection
An April 1986 photo of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant after one of the reactors exploded. (AP Photo)
Ukraine
Chernobyl, 40 Years Since Disaster: Five Things to Know
It comes four years into the Russian invasion that has put the plant once again under threat and raised risks of another radioactive catastrophe.
https://www.kyivpost.com/post/74633
France
Réseau Sortir du nucleaire
Tchernobyl année 40 (in French)
https://www.sortirdunucleaire.org/Tchernobyl-annee-40?origine_sujet=LI202604
Japan
Chernobyl first responder says few survive 40 years on
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/04/21/world/chernobyl-40-years-on/
Australia
40 years after Chernobyl we face a new nuclear risk — this time as a weapon of war
United Kingdom
Fears over new Chernobyl ‘nuclear accident’ as Vladimir Putin risks catastrophe
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/chernobyl-nuclear-accident-russia-ukraine-37054847
Germany
Heinrich Böll Stiftung
Dossier
Chernobyl: 40 Years After the Disaster
Nuclear Power in Eastern Europe
Forty years after the Chernobyl/Chornobyl reactor disaster, Russia is once again jeopardizing nuclear safety in Eastern Europe through direct attacks on nuclear power plants in Ukraine. Other countries seem largely unfazed, clinging to nuclear power and planning new reactors.
Our dossier highlights how selected countries look back to this historical turning point and deal with nuclear energy today.
https://www.boell.de/en/chernobyl-40-years-after-disaster
5 articles on theconversation.com
Chernobyl at 40: the lies, the loss and why we can’t let go
https://theconversation.com/chernobyl-at-40-the-lies-the-loss-and-why-we-cant-let-go-280369
Chernobyl’s wildlife: the real story isn’t the presence of radiation – it’s the absence of humans
https://theconversation.com/chernobyls-wildlife-the-real-story-isnt-the-presence-of-radiation-its-the-absence-of-humans-281084
Research at Chernobyl and Fukushima shows how radioactive materials move in the environment
https://theconversation.com/research-at-chernobyl-and-fukushima-shows-how-radioactive-materials-move-in-the-environment-280007
Chernobyl at 40: Secret Stasi files reveal extent of Soviet misinformation campaign over nuclear disaster
https://theconversation.com/chernobyl-at-40-secret-stasi-files-reveal-extent-of-soviet-misinformation-campaign-over-nuclear-disaster-274930
Forty years after the Chernobyl disaster, its legacy still resonates
https://theconversation.com/forty-years-after-the-chernobyl-disaster-its-legacy-still-resonates-279715
