Atomic America: How a Deadly Explosion, a Feared Admiral, and Rumors of a Bizarre Love Triangle Changed the Course of Nuclear History

The first major American nuclear accident wasn’t at Three Mile Island in 1979 but rather at the military’s National Reactor Testing Station at Idaho Falls, Idaho, in January 1961, killing three workers at the tiny reactor. Two of these men were later rumored incorrectly to have been rivals in a love triangle—which some conjectured might have affected their ability to work effectively and safely at the facility. Tucker (The Great Starvation Experiment ) skillfully reveals the drama of the event. At the same time, he shows how the accident resulted from inadequate maintenance, poor training, negligence and ignorance. Tucker also profiles the inscrutable naval R&D power broker Hyman Rickover, who almost singlehandedly resurrected the potential of nuclear power after the 1961 disaster through a monklike and emphatic devotion to the highest skill in engineering and the best training. Today, trying to balance the realities of global warming with America’s energy needs, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has received proposals for 32 new reactors—which makes Tucker’s book vitally relevant. (Mar. 3)