Spent nuclear fuel pools are designed to cool fuel rods after they come out of a nuclear reactor. While powering a nuclear reactor, these fuel rods become very, very hot (2,800 degrees Celsius / 5,092 degrees Fahrenheit). After they've spent 3 to 6 years inside of a nuclear reactor, fuel rods are no longer efficient. Problem is, they still emit plenty of harmful radiation, and they will for the next 10,000 years. Even though it’s trash, there’s not a garbage dump in the world that will accept it. So, why is water a good place to put these things and what would happen if you fall into one of those spent fuel pools?

Transcript and sources: https://insh.world/science/what-if-yo...

Made possible with the support of Ontario Creates http://www.ontariocreates.ca

Watch more what-if scenarios:
Planet Earth:    • What If Earth Was in Fact Flat?  
The Cosmos:    • Video  
Technology:    • What If the Sahara Desert Was Covered...  
Your Body:    • What If You Were Born on a Space Stat...  
Humanity:    • What If You Were the Last Person on E...  

Follow what-if on Instagram for bonus material:   / what.if.show  
Suggest an episode: http://bit.ly/suggest-whatif
T-shirts and merch: http://bit.ly/whatifshop
Facebook Watch:   / what.if.science  
Watch on Tubi: http://bit.ly/what-if-tubi

"Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it, we go nowhere." — Carl Sagan

Feedback, inquiries and suggestions: https://underknown.com/contact