75 years since the 1st controlled nuclear chain reaction
Nobel-winning Italian-American physicist Enrico Fermi conducted the first controlled, self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction on December 2, 1942, marking the start of the "Atomic Age". The reactor, comprising 19,000 pieces of uranium fuel enclosed in 40,000 graphite blocks, produced a reaction that was not strong enough to power even a single light bulb, but led to development of the atomic bomb.