Chernobyl was chosen as the site of Ukraine's first nuclear power plant in 1972, located 15 kilometres (9 mi) north of the city, which opened in 1977.

After its capture, it was reported that radiation levels temporarily rose, due to human activities, including earthworks, which disturbed the dust.

[9] Some older geographical dictionaries and descriptions of modern Eastern Europe mention "Czernobol" (Chernobyl) with reference to Ptolemy's world map (2nd century AD).

[11] According to the Dictionary of Ancient Geography of Alexander Macbean (London, 1773), Azagarium is "a town of Sarmatia Europaea, on the Borysthenes" (Dnieper), 36° East longitude and 50°40' latitude.

The question of Azagarium's correct location was raised in 1842 by Habsburg-Slovak historian, Pavel Jozef Šafárik, who published a book titled "Slavic Ancient History" ("Sławiańskie starożytności"), where he claimed Azagarium to be the hill of Zaguryna, which he found on an old Russian map "Bolzoj czertez" (Big drawing)[dubious – discuss] near the city of Pereiaslav, now in central Ukraine.

[13] In 2019, Ukrainian architect Boris Yerofalov-Pylypchak published a book, Roman Kyiv or Castrum Azagarium at Kyiv-Podil.

[14] The archaeological excavations that were conducted in 2005–2008 found a cultural layer from the 10–12th centuries AD, which predates the first documentary mention of Chernobyl.

[18] The Chernobyl castle was rebuilt in the first quarter of the 16th century being located nearby the settlement in a hard to reach area.

[18] During that period Chernobyl was inhabited by Ukrainian peasants, some Polish people and a relatively large number of Jews.

[18] The traditionally Eastern Orthodox Ukrainian peasantry around the town were forcibly converted, by Poland, to the Ruthenian Uniate Church.

[18] Following the Second Partition of Poland, in 1793 Chernobyl was annexed by the Russian Empire[23] and became part of Radomyshl county (uezd) as a supernumerary town ("zashtatny gorod").

The Jewish population suffered greatly from pogroms in October 1905 and in March–April 1919; many Jews were killed or robbed at the instigation of the Russian nationalist Black Hundreds.

[16] In 1972, the Duga-1 radio receiver, part of the larger Duga over-the-horizon radar array, began construction 11 km (6.8 mi) west-northwest of Chernobyl.

[33] Ukrainian officials reported that the radiation levels in the city had started to rise due to recent military activity causing radioactive dust to ascend into the air.

[34] Hundreds of Russian soldiers were suffering from radiation poisoning after digging trenches in a contaminated area, and one died.

Chernobyl has a humid continental climate (Dfb) with very warm, wet summers with cool nights and long, cold, and snowy winters.On 26 April 1986, one of the reactors at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant exploded after a scheduled test on the reactor was carried out improperly by plant operators.

[43][44] Later analyses concluded that, even with very conservative estimates, relocation of the city (or of any area below 1500 kBq/m2) could not be justified on the grounds of radiological health.

Moreover, an earlier short-term evacuation could have averted more significant doses from short-lived isotope radiation (specifically iodine-131, which has a half-life of about eight days).

[48] Current effective caesium-137 dose rates as of 2019 are 200–250 nSv/h, or roughly 1.7–2.2 mSv per year,[49] which is comparable to the worldwide average background radiation from natural sources.

Chernobyl currently contains offices for the State Agency of Ukraine on the Exclusion Zone Management and accommodations for visitors.

The length of time that workers may spend within the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone is restricted by regulations that have been implemented to limit radiation exposure.

[50] The main goal of the CRDP's activities is supporting the efforts of the Government of Ukraine to mitigate the long-term social, economic, and ecological consequences of the Chernobyl disaster.

According to census information collected over an extended period of time, it is estimated that more mammals live there now than before the disaster.