Which Way, L.A.?
LA's Own Nuclear Meltdown Revisited
Today is the 50th anniversary of a potentially deadly event near Los Angeles that few people know about. We hear about the partial meltdown of a nuclear reactor and why it could still be significant now. On our rebroadcast of today's To the Point, Judge Sonia Sotomayor is likely to be the next member of the US Supreme Court. But her confirmation hearings provide a political platform for both parties.
By Warren Olney • • 1h 0m ListenSince the nuclear meltdown at Three Mile Island in 1979, the US has not built another nuclear power plant. But the drive to stop global warming has created new interest in power sources that don't emit greenhouse gases. What can be learned from LA's own nuclear meltdown, a little-known event that occurred exactly 50 years ago today? On our rebroadcast of today's To the Point, Judge Sonia Sotomayor is likely to be the next member of the US Supreme Court. But her confirmation hearings provide a political platform for both parties. We hear about the first day of what could be a week of setting agendas.
Banner image: Sodium Reactor Experiment facility in the Santa Susana Mountains near Simi Valley, California
In this episode
2 storiesThe US Supreme Court and Partisan Politics
The first morning of Judge Sonia Sotomayor 's confirmation hearings for the US Supreme Court began and ended without her uttering a single word. Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee held forth at length, starting with Democratic Chairman Patrick Leahy.
Read the story28 minLA's Own Nuclear Meltdown Revisited
It's been 50 years since America's first nuclear meltdown in the Santa Susana Mountains, between the San Fernando and Simi Valleys. The site was a massive research installation, which tested 30,000 thousand rocket engines over the years and included ten nuclear reactors.
Read the story27 min