Nuclear Reactor (Subnautica)
Category: Energy Tab: Interior Pieces Description: Processes nuclear reactor rods for huge power supply.
Overview
The Nuclear Reactor processes Uraninite Crystal-based Reactor Rods into Energy for use by a Seabase. The Nuclear Reactor is constructed with the Habitat Builder, and can only be placed in the centers of a Multipurpose Room or Large Room. Rods are inserted or removed by interacting with the computer screen which denotes the front of the device.
Exercise caution when handling radioactive materials. Exposure risks corrupting your PDA's recording of the circumstances of your death. ― PDA, Dialogue
Power Generation
The Nuclear Reactor generates energy at a rate of 250 power units per minute (4.166667 per second) regardless of how many Reactor Rods are installed. Each Reactor Rod has a capacity of 20,000 units of energy: this means that if power is constantly being drained, a Rod will last 80 minutes, meaning a full reactor will last over 5 real-life hours. Each Nuclear Reactor has 2500 energy storage. Rods are not depleted unless power is being drawn from the reactor.
A Nuclear Reactor can hold a maximum of four Reactor Rods. Once placed in the Reactor, they cannot be removed until they have been fully drained: at this point their icon will change, losing the blue glow around their midsection, and they will become "Depleted" Reactor Rods. Once removed these can be discarded, stored, or deleted from the game by placing them in a Nuclear Waste Disposal: they cannot be placed in a standard Trash Can.
If a reactor with partially expended fuel rods inside is deconstructed, the rods are lost.
Despite the Data Bank Entry saying that one should not replace the Reactor Rods without a Radiation Suit, there is no radiation risk associated with a Nuclear Reactor.
Usage
- Input: Reactor Rod × 1 → Output: Energy × 20,000
- Capacity: Up to 4 Reactor Rods (Total 80,000 Energy potential)
Crafting
| Material | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Plasteel Ingot | 1 |
| Advanced Wiring Kit | 1 |
| Lead | 1 |
| Habitat Builder | 1 |
Data Bank Entry
Renewable energy sources will usually be sufficient for maintaining a small outpost. For everything else there's nuclear power.
- Powered by up to four replaceable uranium reactor rods
- Do not attempt to replace reactor rods without a full radiation suit
- Do not attempt to overclock the reactor
Nuclear is ideal for energy-intensive operations such as:
- Self-sufficient colonies supporting more than 20 people
- Industrial outposts operating multiple docks and heavy machinery
- Research stations housing live specimens
Locations
Fragments can be found in:
- Seabed Mountains
- Wrecks
- Dunes
- Blood Kelp Trench
- Sea Treader's Path
- Degasi Seabases (Story Spoiler)
- Jellyshroom Cave
Gallery
A Nuclear Reactor inside a Seabase
Former Nuclear Reactor model
Fragments of the Nuclear Reactor
Developer screenshot of the Nuclear Reactor
Model from Sketchfab
Highpoly model from Sketchfab
Trivia
- Originally a Nuclear Reactor only generated 60 power per minute with 500 energy storage, and Reactor Rods were only good for 1,200 energy each (around 20 minutes of use per rod at maximum power drain). This was buffed several times in later patches.
- It replaced the Power Generator and the first variant was an exterior module with a totally different, more boxy appearance. This version ran on raw Uraninite Crystals.
- It was possible to construct a nuclear reactor on top of a Cyclops in older builds, but the ability to build structures on top of the Cyclops was removed due to frequent physics issues.
