Nearly four decades have passed since Ukraine's Chernobyl disaster. The nuclear accident spewed vast amounts of dangerous radioactive material into the surrounding environment, creating one of the most contaminated areas on the planet. But now, experts have issued a stark warning about one tourist hotspot that may be radioactive 'like Chernobyl' even though it's an 'unrestricted area'.
Believe it or not, this destination is New Mexico's Acid Canyon - a scenic forest route that's gained popularity among bikers and hikers. However, this very canyon was incredibly central to Los Alamos, the birthplace of the world's first atomic bombs. Although it's been a staggering 79 years since Robert Oppenheimer tested his first plutonium weapon here, new research claims that its land is still polluted with 'extreme' concentrations of dangerous radioactive waste.
Michael Ketterer, a Northern Arizona University scientist who led this research, told AP : "This is an unrestricted area. I’ve never seen anything quite like it in the United States..
.It's just an extreme example of very high concentrations of plutonium in soils and sediments. Really, you know, it’s hiding in plain sight.
" Between 1943 and 1964, nuclear research facilities working for the Manhattan project used Acid Canyon as a dumping ground for radioactive waste. Their disposal stream encompassed a variety of dangerous liquids made up of tritium, plutonium, uranium and americium and other chemicals. But in 1966, the US Atomic.