ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Decommissioning of Russian nuclear-powered vessels

Okay kiddo, do you remember what a nuclear-powered vessel is? It's a big boat or a submarine that runs on something called nuclear energy. That's like having a really strong battery that can keep the boat moving for a long, long time.

Now, when a nuclear-powered vessel gets old or is not safe to use anymore, it needs to be taken apart and dealt with in a safe way. This is called decommissioning.

In Russia, they have a lot of old nuclear-powered vessels that need to be decommissioned. This is important because if they're not taken apart safely, it might be dangerous for people and the environment.

So, what do they do to decommission these vessels? Well, first, they make sure that all the nuclear fuel is safely removed from the vessel. They have to be really careful with this because nuclear fuel can be dangerous if it's not handled properly.

Once the fuel is removed, they can start taking apart the vessel. This can take a long time as they need to be careful about where they cut and what they do with the parts of the vessel.

When they're taking apart the vessel, sometimes they find things that are more dangerous than they thought, like radioactive parts. They have special ways of dealing with these things and make sure they're taken care of safely.

Finally, when everything is taken apart, they have to make sure that the area around the vessel is clean and safe. This is a big job but it's really important so that people and the environment are not harmed.

Overall, decommissioning a nuclear-powered vessel is a big and complicated job that needs to be done safely. But it's really important to make sure that everything is dealt with properly so that people and the environment are not put in danger.