Nuclear mattersSwedish police arrest man for building nuclear reactor in his kitchen
A 31-year old Swede was arrested after ahothorities discovered he was preparing to build a nuclear reactor in his apartment’s kitchen; he already had some radioactive material — ordered from overseas — and material acquired by taking apart a domestic fire alarm; he was discovered when he called the Swedish Radiation Authority to inquire whether it was legal to construct a nuclear reactor at home
Site of the Swedish kitchen nuclear reactor // Source: geek.com
Swedish police have arrested a 31-year-old man in Ängelholm, a coastal town in western Sweden, after he sought advice from Swedish government agencies on the legality of building a nuclear reactor in his kitchen.
The man began his experiment with the idea six months ago, and apparently has not kept secret his plans to construct a nuclear reactor in his apartment. He even kept a running blog of his nuclear adventure.
The Local reports that the man, who said he was drawn to nuclear physics since he was a teenager, ordered some radioactive material from overseas and acquired more by taking apart a domestic fire alarm.
Law enforcement became aware of the man’s activities when, two weeks ago, he contacted the Swedish Radiation Authority (Strålsäkerhetsmyndigheten) to inquire whether it was legal to construct a nuclear reactor at home.
Agency officials told him that someone from the agency would be sent to measure the levels of radiation in his flat.
“When they came they had the police with them. I have had a Geiger counter and have not detected a problem with radiation,” the 31-year-old told the local Helsingborgs Dagblad (HD).
The police arrested him and took him in for questioning. The police also seized about $950 worth of equipment.
The man said that, in the future, he plans to focus on the “theoretical” aspects of nuclear physics.
