In the same way that there are people who like Portuguese and mathematics, there are also people who are passionate about science. This was the case of the young boy who became known as “Scout Radioactive” after creating a homemade nuclear reactor in his backyard.
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Nuclear reactor that almost killed thousands of people
See below the creation of a nuclear reactor made by a 17-year-old:
The young David Hahn of 17 years tried to create a nuclear reactor in the backyard of his house in 1995 in the U.S. The materials used for the creation were coffee filters and pickle jars. All of this cost nearly 40,000 people their lives.
Understand more about the case
Fascinated by science, David began his studies at just 10 years old and when he turned 14 he manufactured nitroglycerin, a highly explosive compound. Known as the “Radioactive Scout”, when he developed the nuclear reactor, there was a need for a local intervention by Commercer Township to avoid a tragedy.
Setting up his laboratory in his backyard, the young man began to build his project right there. This physical space change happened after David damaged his entire room while testing his experiments.
The three main chemical elements were: thorium, radium and lithium. Also, the boy needed coffee filters and jars of pickles. All this was necessary due to the high risks involved in handling the products. With these elements, Hahn also created a rudimentary neutron source.
After stopping the teenager's car, the police found the radioactive material in the trunk of the vehicle. So the Environmental Protection Agency became aware of the case and went to the boy's house to check for more materials like that.
Fortunately, there was no disaster, as everything was collected, discarded and buried as radioactive waste. In 2007, David tried again to build a new reactor, and for this he was arrested. In 2016, Hahn was found dead at the age of 39, suffering from depression and drug addiction.
