nuclear power

Nuclear power is a type of nuclear technology involving the controlled use of nuclear fission to release energy for work and the generation of electricity. Nuclear energy is produced by a controlled nuclear chain reaction and creates heat which is used to boil water, produce steam, e.t.c. As of 2004, nuclear power provided 6.5 percent of the world's energy and 15.7 percent of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for 57 percent of all nuclear generated electricity. As of IAEA reported there are 435 nuclear power reactors in the world, operating in 31 countries. The United States produces the most nuclear energy, with nuclear power providing 20 percent of the electricity it consumes, while France produces the highest percentage of its electrical energy from nuclear reactors-80 percent as of 2006. In the European Union as a whole, nuclear energy provides 30 percent of the electricity. Nuclear energy policy differs between European Union countries, and some, such as Austria and Ireland, have no active nuclear power stations. In comparison, France has a large number of these plants, with 16 in currently use. Nuclear fission was first experimently achieved by Enrico Fermi in 1934.Electricity was generated for the first time by a nuclear reactor on December 20,in 1951. A December 1953 speech by President Dwight Eisenhower, "Atoms for Peace," emphasized the useful harnessing of the atom and set the U.S on a course of strong government support for the international use of nuclear power.