search
Reactor
Trends
- 1Nazi Germany had no hope of building an atomic bomb, uranium cubes reveal▼Nazi Germany had no hope of making an atomic bomb, uranium cubes reveal
New analysis of uranium cubes from Nazi Germany's wartime nuclear program indicates the country was far from developing an atomic bomb. The findings, reported by Science, show Germany lacked sufficient enriched uranium and a viable reactor design, reinforcing historians' conclusions that its bomb effort never came close to success. The story is drawing broad attention among science and history readers online.
- 2Los Alamos turned to ENIAC for nuclear Monte Carlo simulations●Los Alamos bets on ENIAC: Nuclear Monte Carlo simulations, 1947–1948 (2014) [pdf]
A 2014 paper details how Los Alamos scientists used the ENIAC computer in 1947–1948 to run Monte Carlo simulations of nuclear processes, an early landmark in computational physics. Readers are revisiting the account of how a machine built for wartime ballistics calculations became a tool for probabilistic modeling of atomic weapons and reactor physics.
- 3NRC issues first US construction permit for BWRX-300 small reactor●NRC issues first U.S. construction permit for a BWRX-300 small modular reactor
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued the first US construction permit for a BWRX-300 small modular reactor, to be built by GE Vernova Hitachi at the Tennessee Valley Authority's Clinch River site. The permit marks a milestone for next-generation nuclear power in the United States, clearing a key regulatory step for the deployment of smaller, potentially cheaper reactors.
- 4China's small modular reactors spark debate over solar's future●China is already building THESE? Will SMRs make our solar plants useless?
German energy commentator Andreas Schmitz argues China is pressing ahead with building small modular reactors (SMRs), prompting the question of whether the compact nuclear technology could make large solar plants redundant. The claim has drawn wide attention, with viewers debating how far Chinese SMR deployment has actually progressed and whether nuclear and solar should be seen as competitors rather than complements in the future energy mix.