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Nuclear power From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Atomic Power redirects here. For the film, see Atomic Power (film). This article is about the power source. For nation states that are nuclear powers, see List of states with nuclear weapons. The Susquehanna Steam Electric Station, a boiling water reactor. The reactors are located inside the rectangular containment buildings towards the front of the cooling towers. Three nuclear-powered American warships, (top to bottom) nuclear cruisers USS Bainbridge and USS Long Beach with USS Enterprise the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier in 1964. Crew members are spelling out Einsteins mass-energy equivalence formula E?=?mc2 on the flight deck. The Russian nuclear-powered icebreaker NS Yamal on a 1994 joint expedition with the NSF. Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provided about 5.7% of the worlds energy and 13% of the worlds electricity, in 2012.[1] In 2013, the IAEA report that there are 437?operational nuclear power reactors (although not all are producing electricity[2]),[3] in 31?countries.[4] More than 150 naval vessels using nuclear propulsion have been constructed. There is an ongoing debate about the use of nuclear energy.[5][6][7] Proponents, such as the World Nuclear Association, the IAEA and Environmentalists for Nuclear Energy contend that nuclear power is a sustainable energy source that reduces carbon emissions.[8] Opponents, such as Greenpeace International and NIRS, believe that nuclear power poses many threats to people and the environment.[9][10][11] Nuclear power plant accidents include the Chernobyl disaster (1986), Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster (2011), and the Three Mile Island accident (1979).[12] There have also been some nuclear-powered submarine mishaps.[12][13][14] Research into safety improvements is continuing[15] and nuclear fusion, believed to be safer, may be used in the