Typically, when faced with an object capable of causing death within two days from just a brief encounter, most people would choose to steer clear.
Nevertheless, after footage of humanity’s most perilous creation spread widely online, many were left pondering the same question.
Let’s address that question.
The ‘Elephant’s Foot,’ despite its name, has nothing to do with animals and is a phenomenon everyone should be wary of.
As per the science magazine Nautilus, a mere 30-second exposure to this entity can lead to severe cellular damage.
Within four minutes, symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, and fever are likely to occur. If one remains exposed for five minutes, the prognosis is grim, with only two days left to live.
Fortunately, it’s not something you would accidentally encounter in Pripyat, Ukraine. This is the site of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, where a reactor meltdown in 1986 prompted a mass evacuation, leaving the area desolate ever since.
The room housing the ‘foot’ is known as the ‘Elephant’s Foot of Chernobyl’ because of the radioactive mass resembling an elephant’s foot.
Images and videos show individuals around Unit 4 after the incident, capturing photos of the amalgamation of concrete, sand, and melted nuclear fuel.
When a Reddit user shared the images online, viewers were alarmed by the hazardous mass, with many curious about the unexpectedly clear quality of the images from such a radioactive site.
One user queried: “Silly question, why there is no grain in the image from the radiation? Like that photo from the helicopter.”
Another remarked: “I’m also curious. Maybe footage was cleared up in the post production.”
Initially, radiation levels at the ‘foot’ reached 10,000 roentgens per hour, enough to be lethal to anyone standing within a meter for five minutes.
This level of radiation was sufficient to render any images grainy due to its impact on film.
However, by 1996, when Artur Korneyev, a Kazakhstani nuclear inspector, captured the now-famous image, the radiation emitted by the Elephant’s Foot had decreased to about 10 percent of its original level.
This reduction meant Korneyev could safely stand near it for a short duration before experiencing its harmful effects.
A Reddit user elaborated on this, explaining: “Video is from the 1996 visit, the uranium mostly puts off alpha particles which do not penetrate skin, but are extremely deadly if inhaled or ingested, they weren’t around it for that long and they had ventilation.
“The image would show considerable grain in 1986, but by 1996, the camera used wasn’t affected.”
The exposed Chernobyl disaster site was initially covered temporarily after the catastrophe, but it has been safely secured under the New Safe Confinement since 2016. Meanwhile, Pripyat remains an abandoned city, though it does allow tourists to visit.