meltdown
30
7.4
- noun
- /ˈmɛltdaʊn/
- Specialized
:
fusión del núcleo
- There was a meltdown in reactors three and four and the government tried to hush it up, but was unsuccessful.
- nuclear meltdown
- reactor meltdown
Without the meltdown, without the nuclear waste.
- Without the meltdown, without the nuclear waste.
- We provided every possible support for Japan and its people in response to the triple catastrophe of the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown earlier this year.
Examples
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The scientists monitored the reactor closely to prevent a meltdown after detecting a rise in temperature.
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But if there were a complete meltdown, what about the steam being released into the air?
Blog text (20) -
Start the core meltdown and get out of there.
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Just press one more, and the meltdown will begin.
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It's a core meltdown, sir.
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There was a meltdown at the plant, so they gave me the afternoon off.
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There could be a core meltdown in 33 minutes.
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Many hours passed before the operators realized that the facility they were standing in had entered into partial core meltdown.
Academic text (2012) -
A nuclear reactor meltdown occurred at Chernobyl in 1986.
Academic text (1996) -
According to the news reports, thousands of Harrisburg residents were threatened by an "imminent meltdown" and by the radiation vented into the atmosphere.
Academic text (1995)
Synonyms
5
7.2
A very dangerous accident in a nuclear power plant when the reactor gets too hot and releases radiation
Compounds
- Specialized
5
7.2
A very dangerous accident in a nuclear power plant when the reactor gets too hot and releases radiation
How Severe
- Specialized
30
7.4
8
3.7
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Meltdown comes from the two simple English parts melt ('to become liquid from heat') and down ('down'), and it was used for a nuclear reactor whose hot core can literally melt and fall apart. So a nuclear meltdown is when the reactor's core melts and causes very serious damage.