noun
nuclear reactor; atomic reactor
Standard technical and everyday term for a device that initiates and controls a sustained nuclear chain reaction.
原子炉の安全性について議論が続いている。
Debate continues about the safety of nuclear reactors.
この原子炉は来年稼働を停止する予定だ。
This nuclear reactor is scheduled to be decommissioned next year.
Compound of 原子 (atom) and 炉 (furnace, hearth), a calque from Western terms such as 'atomic reactor'.