Experimental Breeder Reactor Number 1 in Idaho, the first power reactor. The reactor is in the building top right, the two structures lower left are reactors from the Aircraft Nuclear Propulsion Project

Experimental Breeder Reactor I (EBR-I) is a decomissioned research reactor and U.S. National Historic Landmark located in the desert about 18 miles southeast of Arco, Idaho. At 1:50pm on December 20, 1951 it became the world's first electricity-generating nuclear power plant when it produced sufficient electricity to illuminate four 200-watt light bulbs.^[1][2] It subsequently generated sufficient electricity to power its building, and continued to be used for experimental purposes until it was decomissioned in 1964. Photo of Experimental Breeder Reactor Number One (EBR-1). ... Photo of Experimental Breeder Reactor Number One (EBR-1). ... Research reactors comprise a wide range of civil and commercial nuclear reactors which are generally not used for power generation. ... Motto: (historic) In God We Trust (official, 1956–present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York Official language(s) None at the federal level; English de facto Government Federal Republic  - President George W. Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence - Declared - Recognized From... USS Constitution. ... Arco, Idaho Arco is a city located in Butte County, Idaho. ... December 20 is the 354th day of the year (355th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1951 (MCMLI) was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... ...

Part of the National Reactor Testing Station (now known as INL), EBR-I's construction started in late 1949. The reactor itself was designed by a team led by Walter Zinn at the Argonne National Laboratory. Installation of the reactor at EBR-I took place in early 1951 and the first reaction went critical on August 24, 1951. On December 20 of that year, atomic energy was successfully harvested for the first time. The design purpose of EBR-I was not to produce electricity but instead to validate nuclear physics which suggested that a breeder reactor should be possible. In 1953, experiments revealed the reactor was producing additional fuel during fission, thus confirming the hypothesis. However, on November 29, 1955, the reactor at EBR-I suffered a partial meltdown due to operator error. It was subsequently repaired for further experiments. The Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) is an 890 square mile (2,300 km²) complex located in the Idaho desert between the towns of Arco and Idaho Falls. ... The Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is an 890 square mile (2,300 km²) complex located in the Idaho desert between the towns of Arco and Idaho Falls. ... 1949 (MCMXLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1949 calendar). ... Argonne National Laboratory is one of the United States governments oldest and largest science and engineering research national laboratories and is the largest in the Midwest. ... 1951 (MCMLI) was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... August 24 is the 236th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (237th in leap years), with 129 days remaining. ... 1951 (MCMLI) was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... December 20 is the 354th day of the year (355th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Nuclear physics is the branch of physics concerned with the nucleus of the atom. ... A breeder reactor is a nuclear reactor that breeds fuel by producing more fissile material than it consumes. ... 1953 (MCMLIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link is to a full 1953 calendar). ... An induced nuclear fission event. ... November 29 is the 333rd (in leap years the 334th) day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A nuclear meltdown occurs when the core of a nuclear reactor melts. ...

The first production of usable nuclear electricity in Idaho National Laboratory occurred in December 20th 1951 when four light bulbs were lit with electricity generated from the EBR-1 reactor.

Besides generating the world's first electricity from atomic energy, EBR-I was also the world's first breeder reactor and the first to use plutonium fuel. EBR-I was deactivated in 1964 and replaced with a new reactor, EBR-II. Landmark status for EBR-I was granted by President Lyndon Johnson and Glenn T. Seaborg on August 25, 1966. The site has been open to the public since 1976, however it is only open between the Memorial Day and Labor Day holidays. Also on display at the site are two prototype reactors from the Aircraft Nuclear Propulsion Project of the 1950s. Image File history File links First_four_nuclear_lit_bulbs. ... Image File history File links First_four_nuclear_lit_bulbs. ... A breeder reactor is a nuclear reactor that breeds fuel by producing more fissile material than it consumes. ... General Name, Symbol, Number plutonium, Pu, 94 Chemical series actinides Group, Period, Block n/a, 7, f Appearance silvery white Atomic mass (244) g/mol Electron configuration [Rn] 5f6 7s2 Electrons per shell 2, 8, 18, 32, 24, 8, 2 Physical properties Phase solid Density (near r. ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ... Experimental Breeder Reactor-II (EBR-II)is a sodium cooled reactor with a thermal power rating of 62. ... Lyndon Baines Johnson (August 27, 1908–January 22, 1973), often referred to as LBJ, was an American politician. ... Glenn T. Seaborg Glenn Theodore Seaborg (April 19, 1912 – February 25, 1999) was an American chemist prominent in the discovery and isolation of many transuranic elements (including plutonium, during the Manhattan Project). ... August 25 is the 237th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (238th in leap years), with 128 days remaining. ... 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1966 calendar). ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1976 calendar). ... Relatives and others traditionally place flags near veterans headstones on Memorial Day Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday that is observed on the last Monday of May (most recently observed May 29, 2006). ... Labour Day (or Labor Day) is an annual holiday that resulted from efforts of the labour union movement, to celebrate the economic and social achievements of workers. ... The US Aircraft Reactor Experiment (ARE) was a 2. ... The 1950s were the decade that spanned the years 1950 through 1959, although some sources say from 1951 through 1960. ...

EBR-I was followed by Experimental Breeder Reactor II in 1964. Experimental Breeder Reactor-II (EBR-II)is a sodium cooled reactor with a thermal power rating of 62. ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ...

Maps and aerial photos

Coordinates: 43.512125° N -113.005800° E Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically); large version (pdf) The geographic (earth-mapping) coordinate system expresses every horizontal position on Earth by two of the three coordinates of a spherical coordinate system which is aligned with the spin axis of the Earth. ...

• Maps and aerial photos
  • WikiSatellite view at WikiMapia
  • Street map from Mapquest or Google
  • Topographic map from Topozone
  • Aerial photograph from Terraserver or Google
  • Closeup aerial from Terraserver or Google

Sources

• IEEE History Center: EBR-I
• INL EBR-1
• ANS EBR-I History
• Atomic Heritage Foundation

1. ^ Experimental Breeder Reactor 1 factsheet, Idaho National Laboratory
2. ^ Fifty years ago in December: Atomic reactor EBR-I produced first electricity American Nuclear Society Nuclear news, November 2001