Your friendly neighborhood nuclear reactor. This reactor is retired but there is a shiny new building just down the complex. Making nuclear products without the same public visibility? This is the TROJAN nuclear reactor, decommissioned November 1992 located on U.S. highway 30, approximately 12 miles north of St. Helens. (Someone asked). In 2006 the cooling tower (shown here) was demolished. Thancks for the pichur. This will help me get an A on my siense report jessica Tuesday, March 21st, 2006 at 20:00:19 Doubt it's making nuke prods w/o public visability Fella Tuesday, May 30th, 2006 at 01:48:46 the black and white image of reactor make me nostalgic . it is looking so calm like a sages sitting and chanting the prayer rakesh sharma (india) Friday, July 7th, 2006 at 04:14:16 I'm part of the Stinson Beach Solar Committee (in CA) and am doing photo research for my community alternative energy newsletter/newspaper. We are entirely non-profit and I'm inquiring as to what you would charge to use this image in our paper (due out beginning of Aug.) Kyra Thursday, July 20th, 2006 at 18:47:27 This Picture made my project glow!!!! Thanks a lot Nikhil Friday, October 20th, 2006 at 06:14:06 This picture is so magnificent it makes you want to know whats inside it and what it looks like in there...... bobby Monday, October 30th, 2006 at 17:50:23 wow, killer shot. I find nuclear plants to be fascinating. Ryou Wednesday, November 29th, 2006 at 23:02:02 thank u because my project was succesful due to this picture.thanks a lot. harish Tuesday, January 16th, 2007 at 04:29:11 Ok, so what in the picture is actually the nuclear reactor? Sean Sunday, April 15th, 2007 at 14:25:45 "Thancks for the pichur. This will help me get an A on my siense report" HAHAHAAHHAAH!!!! LOL!! I dearly hope you're in 2nd grade or lower, or else our education is too far gone. Anyways, the big squeezed-cylinder buildings (the focus of the picture),which are often used as symbols of nuclear power, are actually the cooling towers of nuclear power plants. Its purpose is only to cool circulated water that is then sent back to the core. Much of the super-heated water is lost as steam during this process (the stuff coming out of the towers is water vapor, not smoke). The nuclear reactor itself is a much smaller building with a round top, which is where nuclear fission actually takes place. Mike Monday, March 17th, 2008 at 18:03:05 Ok, so what in the picture is actually the nuclear reactor? The reactor is directly beneath that dome in the left of the picture. You can't see it since this photo was taken from outside. Billy Wednesday, March 26th, 2008 at 21:20:45 "Thancks for the pichur. This will help me get an A on my siense report" Sometimes I fear for my generation. Lovely picture here. Laura Monday, December 8th, 2008 at 02:18:34 Mike is correct that the cooling tower is the large parabolic walled structure. The circulating water from the tower does not actually go into the core. It goes through the through heat exchangers the largest being the main condenser. That water condenses the steam that has been through the turbine. The source of this steam depends on the reactor design being a pressurized water reactor or a boiling water reactor. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pressurized_water_reactor or http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boiling_water_reactor I really like the photo especially how the lines on the road lead a person's eyes into the rest of the photo. Paul Paul Friday, July 24th, 2009 at 18:03:34 Mr. Harvey, My daughter (age 10) is looking for a picture of a nuclear reactor that she can superimpose herself into for a school project about alternative energy sources. Our family feels strongly about the creative rights of artists, and she won't use the photo without your permission (or without giving credit). Would it be alright with you if she used your image in her project? Robyn Czarnecki Sunday, November 21st, 2010 at 17:14:37 You are welcome to use the image, free of charge. Good luck with the project! John Harvey Thursday, March 10th, 2011 at 23:36:06 This is a very breathtaking picture. Mark Sunday, March 20th, 2011 at 16:11:46