Chernobyl was the largest uncontrolled radioactive release in recorded history. Chernobyl was an accident that occurred on April 26, 1986 during routine checks on the Chernobyl 4 reactor. The explosion released all the xenon gas and about half of its iodine-131 and cesium-137 into the atmosphere. This accident resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and millions of people suffering from radiation poisoning. Chernobyl thrived with a population of around 14,000; however, today it is a ghost town with a population of around 150 residents. Almost the entire population chose to evacuate, while others took the risk to preserve the memory of the once thriving city. Radiation still lingers in the air today, still at very powerful and dangerous levels; 600,000 workers attempted to contain radiation levels. Chernobyl still has lasting effects today; it released record amounts of radiation, affected millions of lives, prompted thousands of abortion requests, destroyed wild life, and was a key turning point in history for nuclear safety. Currently, Chernobyl holds the record for the largest nuclear accident in the world. Some areas of Europe were substantially contaminated by the radiation released; particularly Belarus, Ukraine and Russia. The reactor explosion caused a massive evacuation for anyone even remotely close to the explosion. This has turned most towns in the area into ghost towns with populations ranging from double digits to a few hundred. Even though the vast majority were evacuated, a large portion were still affected by radiation because they were within range of the accident and/or took too long to move away from the vicinity. This caused millions... half the paper... a magical event that impacted the lives of all of Europe. It released record amounts of radiation, affected millions of lives, prompted thousands of abortion requests, destroyed wild life, and was a major turning point in history for nuclear safety. There are so many negative aspects associated with Chernobyl, but it helped us learn from our mistakes. It is now almost impossible for something like this to happen again due to the revised architecture, added systems and improved technology. However, this does not take away the pain felt by Chernobyl; this event will forever remain known in infamy. Many lives are still affected by this event, even 28 years later. Thousands of families have lost loved ones and millions of people have seen the lives of their family members seriously affected by serious illnesses and deformities. Chernobyl and the families affected will always be remembered.