Massive cooling towers dominate the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant near Middletown, Pennsylvania. Unit 2 has been closed since 1979, when it was the site of the worst-ever U.S. nuclear accident. Exelon, the utility that owns Unit 1, plans to shut it down by the end of September.
Photographer: Michelle Gustafson/BloombergWhere America Flirted With Its Own Chernobyl
Three Mile Island turned the nation against nuclear energy. Now the notorious complex is closing just as some say it still has a role to play.
It started with a pump failure early on the morning of March 28, 1979.
Steam generators were unable to draw heat out of a reactor at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Middletown, Pennsylvania. While an emergency shutdown was triggered, another problem—a stuck valve—was letting coolant escape from the reactor core.