Interesting Factoid 

Since the first atomic tests in the 1940s, all the steel made on Earth has been slightly contaminated with radioactive particles present in the atmosphere, which inevitably get into the blast furnace because large amounts of air are needed for combustion. When scientists need steel that is completely free of decaying radioactive nuclei, they get it from a surprising source. After World War I, the German battleship fleet was scuttled at Scapa Flow in Scotland, the giant natural harbor where the British Grand Fleet used to be based. When nonradioactive steel is required, scuba divers go down and carve chunks of pre-Atomic-age steel from the battleships, which thankfully provide a huge resource of the material.

  Posted at 11:51 AM by Nick |   |   |

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