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Pioneer

Enrico Fermi

en-REE-koh FAIR-mee
Nuclear Pioneers

The Italian-American physicist who led the team that achieved the first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction, Chicago Pile-1, on 2 December 1942 beneath the stands of a university football field. Nobel laureate of 1938 for work on neutron-induced radioactivity, he stands at the origin of nuclear power as directly as anyone can.

Facts
Birth Date
1901-09-29 1
Birth Year
1901 2
Death Date
1954-11-28 1
Death Year
1954 1
Nationality
Italian-American 1
Defining Contribution
The first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction, Chicago Pile-1, 1942 1
Connections

Associated With

Source Encyclopedia Britannica
Source Wikipedia

Milestones Credited

Source Encyclopedia Britannica
In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc.View the Source
2. Wikidata: Enrico Fermi
Wikidata Q8753, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source
Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationAssociated With: Uranium, History, Fission research
Quote, Associated With: Uranium, History, Fission research
On 2 December 1942, as part of the Manhattan Project, another team led by Enrico Fermi was able to initiate the first artificial self-sustained nuclear chain reaction, Chicago Pile-1.
View the Source
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