December 2 marks the birth of the Atomic Age. It's the 66th anniversary of the first self-sustaining artificial nuclear chain reaction. That reaction was accomplished using the "atomic pile" -- literally a big pile of graphite bricks and uranium -- in a disused squash court under the bleachers of Stagg Field at the University of Chicago. (The stadium was available for potentially lethal experiments because the U. of C. had abandoned varsity football in 1939, after more than a decade as the doormat of the Big Ten conference.)
At 3:25 p.m. on December 2, 1942, the pile CP-1 ("Chicago Pile 1") went critical -- it began a self-sustaining nuclear fission chain reaction, in which the neutrons from uranium atoms breaking up flew off and split other atoms. The scientists who created the experiment, led by Enrico Fermi, let it run for half an hour before shutting it down by inserting neutron dampers.
Since then, nuclear energy has been used in peace and war. It has wrecked two cities, keeps dozens of cities lit and warm, poisoned a chunk of land in Ukraine, and may be our best hope for seriously reducing greenhouse gas emissions without having to live like medieval peasants.
So lift a glass of a nice Italian wine in honor of Fermi and the CP-1 atomic pile. Salute!
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