What) Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station (TMI) is a civilian nuclear power plant located on Three Mile Island in the Susquehanna River, south of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. It has two separate units, known as TMI-1 and TMI-2. The plant is widely known for having been the site of the most significant accident in United States commercial nuclear energy, on March 28, 1979, when TMI-2 suffered a partial meltdown. The accident resulted in no deaths or injuries to plant workers or members of nearby communities. The reactor core of TMI-2 has since been removed from the site but the site has not been decommissioned.

    The Three Mile Island Unit 1 is a pressurized water reactor designed by Babcock and Wilcox with a net generating capacity of 802 MWe. The initial construction cost was $400 million US, equal to $1.8 Billion today.  TMI-1 was licensed to operate for 40 years from its first run, and in 2009, was extended 20 years, which means it may operate until April 19, 2034. When TMI-2 suffered its accident in 1979, TMI-1 was offline for refueling. It was brought back online in October 1985, after public opposition, several federal court injunctions and some technical and regulatory complications. Public reaction to the event was probably influenced by the release of The China Syndrome 12 days before the accident.  That movie happened to depict an accident at a nuclear reactor. (1)

    Where) 3800 River Road

    Why) I wanted to see an active nuclear power plant that looked the way I thought a nuclear power plant should look.  I actually spent a couple hours poking around a website that listed all the ones in the United States.  When I finally got to Pennsylvania, I knew that this was the place to visit.