Here's just how close the war in Ukraine has come to Europe's largest nuclear plant
Over the weekend, Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant — the largest such plant in Europe — came under fire. Who was behind it remains unclear: Ukraine and Russia blame each other for the attacks. What is clear, is that the strikes are coming nearer to and have already damaged some critical parts of the sprawling nuclear complex.
An NPR analysis of satellite imagery and posts to Twitter, Telegram and YouTube over the past month show how an escalating conflict at the plant is drawing ever closer to critical safety systems and radioactive materials, ratcheting up the chance of a nuclear accident.
Satellite imagery from the company Planet taken in early July and over the weekend shows Russian troops positioned inside the plant perimeter, along with some of the damage caused by military strikes around the nuclear facility. The fighting comes at a time when Russia is attempting to formally coincide with the United States delivering heavy weapons to Ukraine, which has used them to re-take significant portions of southern Ukraine all summer.
