Chernobyl disaster substantial levels of caesium, which were believed to have been passed onto them during their consumption by wild boars, a significant number of which already contained radioactive particles above the allowed level. Like many other releases of radioactivity into the environment, the Chernobyl release was controlled by the physical and chemical properties of the radioactive elements in the core. Particularly dangerous are the highly radioactive fission products, those with high nuclear decay rates that accumulate in the food chain, such as some of the isotopes of iodine, caesium and strontium. Iodine-131 and caesium-137 are responsible for most of the radiation
Windscale Piles There was a release to atmosphere of radioactive material that spread across the UK and Europe. The accident was rated a level 5 on the International Nuclear Event Scale. The chimney filters were credited with maintaining partial containment and thus minimising the radioactive content of the smoke that poured from the chimney during the fire. This included a large quantity of tritium, but it proved to be a negligible radiological hazard compared with the other radionuclides. The fire released an estimated of iodine-131, of caesium-137, of polonium-210 and of xenon-133. Iodine-131, which may lead to thyroid cancer, made the most