50 Years Ago - US Senate Ratifies the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty

Today marks the 50th anniversary of the US Senate's ratification of the Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapons Tests in the Atmosphere, Outer Space and under Water, commonly known as the Limited or Partial Test Ban Treaty. The treaty had been formally signed in Moscow on 5 August 1963 by the US, the USSR, and the United Kingdom. The treaty was the culmination of efforts that began in the mid 1950s and efforts to reach an agreement were given new impetus after the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962.

The postcard shows the US Senate in session, purportedly the first official photograph of the Senate in session as it voted on the treaty. The Senate approved a resolution of ratification of  the treaty by a vote of 80 to 19, greater than the required two-thirds majority vote under the Constitution.

A Comprehensive  Nuclear-Test Ban Treaty was signed in 1996 but has yet to enter into force for the lack of ratification by a number of countries, including the United States.  The web site of the CTBTO organisation has this sobering video of the history of nuclear testing by artist Isao Hashimoto:

Life extension in Canada and France

Plants in Canada and France have received the green light for additional years of operation. In Canada the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission authorized a 5 year extension of the Pickering license. There are 6 operating plants at the site and another two that have been permanently shut down. The plants are Candu 500 pressurized heavy water reactors.

The two operating units at Pickering "A" began operation in the early 1970s; the 4 Pickering "B" units were operational in the early 1980s. In permitting license renewal the CNSC put a hold on operation beyond 210,000 full power hours until additional safety assessments were conducted which are to address lessons learned" from the Fukushima Daiichi accident.

The French regulator - l'Autorité de sûreté nucléaire (ASN) - recently approved an additional 10 year period of operation for Bugey Unit 4. Bugey 4 is a 880 MWe pressurized water reactor that started operation in 1979 and is located northeast of Lyon. It is the second Bugey unit to have been extended to a 40 year operating life.

In France, a licence to operate a nuclear reactor does not specify a predetermined time limit, as compared to the US which licenses plants for 40 years with the option for renewal for an additional 20 year period. However, the law requires that the operator undertake a safety review every 10 years after which ASN makes decision on renewal. Effectively, Bugey 2 and 4 have passed the periodic safety review three times since operation began.

Here's the control room of one of the Bugey units. By their dress, these guys may have been part of the original operating crew! I've found a lot of postcards for the Bugey site.

  

And finally a shot of an old church with Bugey's cooling towers in the background.