Nuclear Fuel Rods, Harmless or Harmful?

Will holding a nuclear fuel rod burn your fingers right off, or, will it be safe enough that nothing so tremendous will happen? This myth may have become popular thanks to the opening sequence of the show The Simpson. In it we see Homer leaving the power plant and dropping a bar of uranium which then bounces and lands in between his shirt and his back. Later he reaches and pulls it out with his hands and throws it out of his car window while driving. In the newer version of the opening sequence we even see the bar of uranium landing on another character who then proceeds to eat it.

But first, what is a nuclear fuel rod? It is a group of tubes made of zirconium alloy or stainless steel. Inside these sealed tubes are pellets made of enriched uranium stacked on top of one another. Bundled together, these nuclear fuel rods are then used to form a nuclear fuel core.

So, are they safe to hold? The answer is no, not without special protection for your hands. This is because the pellets, as mentioned, are made of uranium which is radioactive according to Los Alamos National Laboratory's Chemistry Division. Meaning, nuclear fuel rods are radioactive. The Energy Information Administration also says they are even more radioactive after they are completely used up and ready to be replaced. Therefore, they are not safe enough to directly hold.

-Pictures from Flickr and Climate Progress