Basement Walkway Adjacent to Reactor

Provenance

Camera: NIKON D850
Lens: 14.0-24.0 mm f/2.8
Settings: 14mm · f/6.3 · 0.8s · ISO 64
Paper: Ilford Galerie Smooth Cotton Rag 310 gsm

A concrete walkway extends through the ANSTO HIFAR reactor basement. It runs parallel to the massive, decommissioned reactor core, a functional path within the powerful industrial complex.

Edition

Open edition

Open edition
Printed to order, no fixed quantity. Each print is hand-signed by the photographer.

Limited edition
A fixed number of prints exist. Once sold, the edition closes permanently. Each print is individually numbered and signed.

$100.00 AUD

Colour

Signed, numbered, with COA. Made to order in 10 to 20 business days (framed). Shipped in protective packaging with edition certificate, paper-stock reference and a printed care guide.

See certificate sample →

Shipping Free shipping over $250. Ships worldwide, rates calculated at checkout.

Returns Damaged in transit? We replace it. Full policy →

Ships within 10 business days · signed & numbered

In situ

01 PROVENANCE

Print datasheet

Title: Basement Walkway Adjacent to Reactor
Series: ANSTO HIFAR
Catalogue: AHF-004
Process: Giclée
Captured: 7 October 2022
Camera: NIKON D850
Lens: 14.0-24.0 mm f/2.8
Aperture: f/6.3
Shutter: 0.8s s
ISO: 64
Focal length: 14 mm
Paper: Ilford Galerie Smooth Cotton Rag 310 gsm
Paper size: 290 × 200 mm
Location: Lucas Heights, New South Wales, Australia
Authenticity: C2PA verified provenance →
Recognised by: Highly Commended in Multimedia at the 2016 National Trust of Australia (NSW) Heritage Awards

02 LOCATION

Lucas Heights, New South Wales, Australia

Map · Mapbox · OpenStreetMap

03 THE STORY

About this print

A concrete walkway runs through the basement of the HIFAR reactor building, set parallel to the reactor block above. The walkway floor is sealed concrete, the walls poured concrete, the ceiling crossed by structural beams and service runs. The reactor block is the dominant volume in the space, its biological shielding visible on one side of the walkway.

The HIFAR reactor block was a steel-clad biological shield of dense iron-shot concrete, a right irregular decagonal prism 6.7 metres across the flats and roughly 11 metres tall. The block sat on around 3,000 tonnes of mass concrete in its foundations. The reactor went critical on 26 January 1958 and operated until 30 January 2007. Spent fuel was unloaded and reprocessed within 12 months of shutdown.

04 FROM THE FIELD NOTES

The blue pipes running through this section of ANSTO HIFAR were an integral part of the biological shielding system, ensuring a controlled flow of water around the shielding structures. This circulation process played a vital role in preventing excessive radiation exposure and maintaining safe operational conditions.

Brett Patman

The series

ANSTO HIFAR

2022 · 49 photographs

At 11:15 pm on Sunday 26 January 1958, Australia Day, the High Flux Australian Reactor went critical for the first time with 11 of 25 fuel elements loaded. The men in the control room had come from Oak Ridge, Chalk River and Harwell. HIFAR was Australia's first nuclear reactor.

View all in this series →

05 SIZE GUIDE

Print sizes

The anatomy view shows what this finish is as a physical object: paper margin, mat band, frame depth, acrylic profile. The comparison strip shows how each size sits relative to the others at true scale. Click a size or a finish to update both.