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Copyright: demon core
The Demon Core was the nickname given to a spherical 6.2 kg (14 lb), 89 mm (3.5 in) diameter mass of plutonium, manufactured by the United States during World War II as part of the Manhattan Project (nuclear weapons development program), and was intended as a core for an early atomic bomb. The Demon Core is infamous for being involved in two fatal criticality events that occurred during experiments in 1945 and 1946. Artwork may be depicted with the demon core glowing blue because of ionized air glow that happens when high amounts of neutrons ionize the air around it. Cherenkov radiation could also explain the blue glow, but is still theoretical at this point.
What is a criticality event/1946 Demon Core Incident
A criticality event is when neutrons coming from decaying or split atoms can start a chain reaction of other close by atoms being split, releasing some of their neutrons in the process, and so on. In order to prevent the core from going critical, there were separated reflector hemispheres of beryllium made to reflect the neutrons coming from the core back inwards.
During the 1946 incident, one of the scientists had violated safety protocol, and used a screwdriver, instead of "shims" - wedges intended for the purpose - to keep the hemispheres separated. The screwdriver slipped, completely sealing the core, starting a chain reaction and exposing the nearby scientists to extreme amounts of radiation.
Legacy
Since 2018, the Demon Core has been the subject of dark/absurd memes online, typically showing characters reenacting the events leading to the second fatal criticality event of 1946, such as moving or removing the screwdriver intended to keep the halves of the sphere separated.
